Persian poetry and proverbs are this US government spokesperson’s strong suit
It's not uncommon for Alan Eyre to appear on a Persian-language news program, speaking in Farsi about the ongoing nuclear negotiations between Iran and the West.
He uses elaborate words and expressions one after the other to make his point. Then comes a typical Alan Eyre moment, something that he's best known for. He drops in a couple of verses of poetry by a 13th century Persian poet.
That's part of what has made Eyre — a US State Department spokesperson — popular among Iranians. He knows how proud Iranians are of their centuries-old literature.
Eyre was appointed to his current position in 2011, part of a wider attempt by the Obama administration to engage with Iranians.
In the absence of a real embassy, the State Department also created a "Virtual Embassy," where Iranians can get information from and ask questions directly of US officials.
But Eyre's love for Persian poetry began long before he started his current role at the State Department. For him, learning Farsi wasn't all that hard.
"Believe me, I have failed on so many languages, this was the only one that I have any sort of ability to speak," he says. "So by definition it has to be relatively easy."
Learning the alphabet, which is mostly Arabic script, was the hard part. But once he had that down, it was a breeze.
His time in Dubai and Los Angeles — sometimes referred to as Tehrangeles — helped a lot too.
"I put myself into situations where I hung out with Iranians and listened to them and every time they would say something I would write it down," Eyre says.
Like the time when one Iranian used the expression "stop putting watermelons under my armpits."
"I was like ‘What? What does that mean?’" he recalls asking.
"It’s like, don’t mess with me. Don’t try to puff me up, don’t flatter me. I sense you’re flattering me for a reason," he explains.
As much fun as experimenting with words and expressions in a foreign language can be, Eyre says it has to be done carefully.
"It’s not like this is my secret weapon where I reach for my utility belt and take out a phrase from Saadi to win the day," he says. "It has to be in context. Were I to do it too much, it would lose its effectiveness."
His position as a US spokesman also means that he has to be selective with his words.
"Some sayings are more appropriate for starting bar fights, some are more appropriate for speaking as a representative of the US government," he says. "You have to know how to differentiate between the two."
One way Eyre updates his list of Farsi words and phrases is through his official Facebook page. He'll write the word or phrase that he doesn't know and ask users to give him the best definition. Iranians write in. And while poetry and proverbs have connected Eyre with a large group of Iranians, he still has his critics.
"I often put out positions and statements on Facebook and get a horde of responses saying ‘Hey, I like you a lot Alan but…’ and then they tell me what they don’t like about US policy. So it’s not like I’m doing a charm offensive, winning hearts and minds over to the US position," he says.
His job, he says, is to convey the US government's message and policies to the Iranian people directly.
He's just doing it in a different way.