B1.2 – Narration and Opinion

Overview

In this chapter you learn how to move beyond simple past storytelling and basic opinions. At B1 level you start linking events, explaining why things happened, and saying clearly what you think about them. Persian gives you clear tools for ordering events in time, showing cause and effect, and positioning your opinion politely or firmly, depending on context.

Narrating Events: Moving Beyond Simple Sentences

You already know how to use the simple past. At this level, narration becomes richer because you connect past events and highlight what is important, surprising, or new in your story. You also begin to mix past with other tenses like present, present continuous, and future expressions, but the heart of narration in Persian is still the past.

Persian stories very often follow a chronological pattern. You introduce the situation, give key events, then end with a result or comment. Notice how the verbs tend to go to the end of each clause, and how connectors help the listener follow the story.

For example, compare a flat sequence with a more B1-like narration.

Flat sequence:
من دیروز رفتم تهران. دوستم را دیدم. قهوه خوردیم. برگشتم خانه.

More developed narration:
دیروز رفتم تهران تا دوستم را ببینم. اول رفتیم کافه و قهوه خوردیم، بعدش کمی توی شهر قدم زدیم و آخرِ شب برگشتم خانه.

In the second version you see sequencing words like "اول" (first), "بعدش" (after that), and "آخرِ شب" (at the end of the night). This is typical of B1 narration: you still use simple grammar, but you start controlling the flow and structure of information.

Story Structure in Persian

A simple and very practical way to structure a story in Persian is to think in three parts: background, main events, and result or comment. You can do this entirely with basic tenses if you choose your time expressions and connectors well.

Background:
معمولاً آخرِ هفته‌ها می‌مانم خانه، ولی این هفته تصمیم گرفتم بروم کوه.

Main events:
صبحِ زود بیدار شدم، با دوستم قرار گذاشتم، و با هم رفتیم دربند. خیلی شلوغ بود و هوا کمی سرد بود، اما خیلی خوش گذشت.

Result or comment:
آخرِ روز خیلی خسته بودم، ولی راضی بودم چون یک روزِ متفاوت داشتم.

At B1 you do not need complicated grammar to tell a good story. What you need is control over sequencing, contrast, and evaluation. You are beginning to say not only what happened, but also what it felt like and why it mattered.

Expressing Sequence and Contrast in Narration

To make your narration clear, you need a small but powerful set of linking words. These are extremely frequent in spoken Persian and they carry important signals about the flow of your story.

Important sequencing words:

"اول" means "first" or "at first" and often comes at the beginning of the sentence.
"بعد" and "بعدش" mean "then" or "after that".
"آخر" and "آخرش" can mean "in the end" or "finally".
"وقتی" introduces a time clause, "when".
"یک دفعه" or "یه دفعه" means "suddenly".
"همین‌طور" suggests "like this", "in this way", often to continue an action or describe continuation.

Important contrast words:

"ولی" means "but" and is extremely common.
"اما" also means "but" and is slightly more formal or emphatic.
"با این که" means "although" or "even though".
"در عوض" means "instead" or "on the other hand".

These words do not change the basic SOV pattern, but they strongly influence the feel of your narrative and help you emphasize changes or surprises.

Giving Opinions: Basic Patterns

At B1 level you need to say what you think, not just describe facts. Persian has several very common expressions for opinion. Many of them use the verb "to think" or "to seem", or they use set phrases with "نظر" and "فکر".

Typical opinion openers include:

"I think ..." as "من فکر می‌کنم ..."
"In my opinion ..." as "به نظرِ من ..."
"It seems to me that ..." as "به نظرِ من این‌طور می‌رسد که ..." in more formal style, but in everyday speech usually simply "به نظرِ من ..."
"I agree" and "I disagree" as "موافقم" and "مخالفم".
"I do not think that ..." as "فکر نمی‌کنم که ...".

These patterns can be followed by a full sentence with a verb at the end, just like any other Persian sentence. At this level you might not yet use the full range of subjunctive forms, but you can already express your stance clearly.

You also begin to distinguish between stronger and softer opinions. For example, "به نظرِ من" is softer and more polite than a direct "این درست نیست" ("this is not right"). Learning which expression to choose in which context is an important part of B1 communicative competence.

Justifying Opinions with Reasons

Expressing opinions without giving reasons often sounds abrupt or weak. At this level you learn to attach arguments to your opinions, so that you can persuade, explain, or just clarify your thinking.

Typical ways to connect an opinion to a reason:

"چون" means "because" and introduces a cause.
"برایِ این که" also means "because" or "in order that", depending on context.
"به خاطرِ این که" means "because" with a nuance of "because of the fact that".
"به همین دلیل" means "for this reason".
"به این خاطر" has a similar meaning, "for this reason" or "that is why".

You often see a pattern like:

Opinion + reason:
به نظرِ من این فیلم خیلی خوب است، چون داستانش قوی است و بازیِ بازیگران هم طبیعی است.

Here the opinion is clearly separated from the reasons. The conjunction "چون" signals that an explanation is coming. This combination of stance and justification is central to B1 expression of opinion, especially in discussions about films, books, news, or personal choices.

Connecting Narration and Opinion

In real communication you rarely tell a story without any comment, and you rarely give an opinion without some example or background. B1 is the level where you start to combine these two: you narrate, then evaluate; or you state a view and then illustrate it with a short story or anecdote.

Narration leading to opinion:
چند وقت پیش رفتم یک رستورانِ جدید. دکورش خیلی قشنگ بود، غذا هم بد نبود، ولی سرویس خیلی کند بود و ما خیلی صبر کردیم. به نظرِ من آن‌قدرها هم خوب نیست که همه می‌گویند.

Opinion leading to narration:
من معمولاً دوست ندارم توی مرکزِ شهر رانندگی کنم، چون همیشه شلوغ است. دفعه‌ی قبل که رفتم، یک ساعت توی ترافیک ماندم و نزدیک بود دیر برسم سرِ کار.

In both examples, the narrator moves between past events and general evaluation. The listener hears both what happened and how the speaker feels about it. This mixture is very natural in Persian conversation and is a main goal at B1.

When you practice, try to answer questions like "چرا این‌طور فکر می‌کنی؟" ("Why do you think that?") with a short story from your own experience. This is exactly the skill you need for narration and opinion together.

Softening and Strengthening Your Opinion

In English you often say "I think", "I guess", "I am sure", "possibly", "maybe" to adjust the strength of your opinion. Persian has similar tools. Learning them helps you sound more natural and more polite.

To make your opinion softer:

"فکر می‌کنم ..." shows a normal, personal view: "I think".
"به نظرم ..." is very common in speech and sounds soft and friendly.
"شاید ..." means "maybe" and can go before a verb.
"احتمالاً ..." means "probably".

Examples:
فکر می‌کنم این پیشنهاد بدی نیست.
به نظرم بهتره فردا بریم.
شاید فردا بارون بیاد.
احتمالاً کلاس فردا کنسل می‌شه.

To make your opinion stronger:

"مطمئنم که ..." means "I am sure that".
"کاملاً موافقم" means "I completely agree".
"اصلاً موافق نیستم" means "I do not agree at all".

Examples:
من مطمئنم که این کار جواب می‌دهد.
کاملاً موافقم که باید زودتر شروع کنیم.
من با این حرف اصلاً موافق نیستم.

At B1 you begin to choose between these expressions depending on context, for example whether you talk to a friend or to a teacher, and how certain you feel about your statement.

Narration of Opinions Over Time

Sometimes you need to say how your opinion has changed, or what you used to think before. This naturally combines narration with evaluation. You do not need very advanced grammar for this, but you need a few time expressions and contrast markers.

Comparing past and present opinion:

قبلاً فکر می‌کردم فارسی خیلی سخت است، ولی حالا می‌بینم که آن‌قدرها هم سخت نیست.
وقتی نوجوان بودم، فیلم‌های کمدی را دوست داشتم، اما الان بیشتر مستند نگاه می‌کنم.

Here "قبلاً" and "وقتی نوجوان بودم" create a past frame. The contrast words "ولی" and "اما" show the change. This pattern is very useful in conversations about your learning process, your preferences, or your experiences in different countries and cultures.

You can also tell short stories about how an experience changed your opinion:

اول فکر می‌کردم این کتاب حوصله‌سَر بَر است، اما وقتی شروع کردم به خواندنش، دیدم خیلی جالب است. از آن به بعد بیشتر کتاب‌های این نویسنده را خواندم.

You narrate the first impression, the experience, and then the new opinion. This is exactly the kind of combined narration and opinion that characterizes B1-level conversational ability.

Using Questions to Invite Opinions and Stories

Part of expressing opinions is inviting the other person to share their view and their stories. You already know how to form yes/no questions and basic wh-questions. At this level you extend this to more open questions that naturally call for narration and argument.

Common patterns to ask for opinions:

"به نظرِ تو ...؟" means "In your opinion, ...?"
"فکر می‌کنی ...؟" means "Do you think ...?"
"تو با این موضوع موافقی یا مخالفی؟" means "Do you agree or disagree with this issue?"
"چطور می‌بینی ...؟" in more advanced use, "How do you see ...?"

Questions that invite a story:

"چی شد که ...؟" means "How come ...?" or literally "What happened that ...?"
"چطوری ...؟" or "چطور ...؟" can introduce "How did you ...?"
"کی اولین بار ...؟" means "When was the first time ...?"
"می‌تونی تعریف کنی که ...؟" means "Can you tell (the story of) ...?"

If you answer such questions with only one sentence, the conversation may stop. At B1, try to answer with at least two or three connected sentences: give a short background, say what happened, and end with a small comment or opinion.

Typical Spoken Style in Narration and Opinion

Everyday Persian narration and opinion use some very frequent spoken forms and phrases. These are not fully formal, but they are very common with friends, family, and in casual settings. Getting familiar with them helps you understand real-life speech and also tell your own stories in a more natural way.

Some features of spoken style:

The short form "مثلاً" is often used to introduce an example: "for example".
People often say "خب" at the beginning of a story or turn: "well".
The form "یه کم" instead of "کمی" for "a little".
The form "یه جورایی" means "kind of", "in a way".
The form "انگار" means "it seems like", "as if".

Example of spoken-like narration with opinion:

خب، دیروز یه اتفاقِ جالب افتاد. داشتم می‌رفتم سرِ کار که یه‌دفعه بارونِ شدیدی گرفت. منم چتر همراهم نبود، کامل خیس شدم. به نظرم هوا این روزها خیلی غیرقابلِ پیش‌بینی شده.

Here the small words "خب", "یه‌دفعه", "منم", and the slightly informal pronoun use give a very conversational tone. As a B1 learner you do not need to copy all details of colloquial grammar, but recognizing these forms and using some of them makes your narration sound more authentic.

Vocabulary Table

Below is a list of important vocabulary from this chapter.