ABCs of Despair / غم‌نامه‌ی الفبا
​
32 Custom-made flash cards, Card box, Printed instructions (2025)
Photo: Ehsan Mo

ABCs of Despair

Only For Adults | Re-learning Farsi Through Dark Entertainment

The ABCs of Despair alphabet cards are designed to simultaneously educate, entertain, and provoke. For each letter of the Farsi alphabet, players are presented with a specific word or phrase, framed within an example sentence.

How to Play

1. Players must quickly improvise a new sentence using a structural format similar to the card, incorporating their own word that begins with the featured letter.
2. Trust your instincts. The first thought that pops into your mind is always the rawest and most authentic.
3. Points are awarded based on existential dread. The player who crafts the darkest, most upsetting, and devastatingly accurate representation of the human condition, specifically capturing the unique despair of living in the diaspora, wins the highest score.
4. The game continues through the alphabet, and the player with the highest scores at the end is crowned the winner.

Optional Rule (The Referee): Including a referee is optional, but highly recommended if you want to increase psychological tension and ignite deep philosophical conflicts among players.

---

This work was generously funded by SK Arts, through The Building Arts Equity: BPOC Program, with funding provided by the Government of Saskatchewan and the financial support of Sask Lotteries, in partnership with SaskCulture.