Question

As explained in "With a Little Help From My Friends," why did the author’s father always try to tell his American neighbors about petroleum?

A) He thought Americans envied Iran's petroleum resources since America had so little.
B) He worked for an international petroleum company and liked talking about his work.
C) He knew they were fascinated by the story of how Iran's petroleum industry developed.
D) He wanted them to know that Iran was a modern country with a successful petroleum industry.

Answer 1

The author's father aimed to show that Iran was modern and successful in its petroleum industry, challenging views of Iran being primitive and highlighting its complex historical relationship with oil.

Step-by-step explanation:

The author's father always tried to tell his American neighbors about petroleum because he wanted them to understand that Iran was a modern country with a successful petroleum industry. This was significant in the context of Iran's history, where the oil industry had become a point of international contention and a symbol of modernization and economic strength. The father's narrative likely aimed to challenge any perceptions of Iran as a primitive society, particularly in light of the complex relations involving the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (now BP), the nationalization of oil fields by Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh, and the subsequent involvement of the UK and the US in Iran's political affairs to maintain Western interests in the region's vast oil resources.