Defining Iran

Author : Shabnam J. Holliday
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 196 pages
File Size : 53,7 Mb
Release : 2016-05-13
Category : History
ISBN : 9781317153559

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Defining Iran by Shabnam J. Holliday Pdf

Defining Iran presents a new and revealing analysis of the way in which Iranian political discourses compete with each other by examining them within the framework of national identity construction. By deconstructing the intellectual roots and development of Iranian national identity, Shabnam Holliday advocates the need to study Iran's heritage and historical experience to understand key shifts and processes in contemporary Iranian politics. Holliday convincingly argues that competing discourses of national identity advocated by political figures from Musaddiq to the current administration demonstrate a politics of resistance to both internal and external forces. With a particular emphasis on Khatami’s presidency, this study compares the meanings attached by significant members of the Iranian political elite to concepts including Iran’s pre-Islamic heritage, Islamic heritage, civilization, 'democracy' and the 'West'. Furthermore, discourses of Iranian national identity exist not in isolation but rather as part of a continuous process construction and reconstruction in Iran's journey of political development; a process manifested so vividly in the revolution of 1979 and the fallout from the 2009 presidential election. Defining Iran simultaneously furthers our understanding of the conceptualization of national identity both generally and specifically in the case of Iran and political dynamics which shape contemporary Iran.

Author : Shabnam Holliday
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 46,9 Mb
Release : 2011
Category : Electronic
ISBN : OCLC:949192397

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Defining Iran by Shabnam Holliday Pdf

Author : Dr Shabnam J Holliday
Publisher : Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.
Page : 208 pages
File Size : 47,8 Mb
Release : 2013-03-28
Category : History
ISBN : 9781409489269

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Defining Iran by Dr Shabnam J Holliday Pdf

Defining Iran presents a new and revealing analysis of the way in which Iranian political discourses compete with each other by examining them within the framework of national identity construction. By deconstructing the intellectual roots and development of Iranian national identity, Shabnam Holliday advocates the need to study Iran's heritage and historical experience to understand key shifts and processes in contemporary Iranian politics. Holliday convincingly argues that competing discourses of national identity advocated by political figures from Musaddiq to the current administration demonstrate a politics of resistance to both internal and external forces. With a particular emphasis on Khatami’s presidency, this study compares the meanings attached by significant members of the Iranian political elite to concepts including Iran’s pre-Islamic heritage, Islamic heritage, civilization, 'democracy' and the 'West'. Furthermore, discourses of Iranian national identity exist not in isolation but rather as part of a continuous process construction and reconstruction in Iran's journey of political development; a process manifested so vividly in the revolution of 1979 and the fallout from the 2009 presidential election. Defining Iran simultaneously furthers our understanding of the conceptualization of national identity both generally and specifically in the case of Iran and political dynamics which shape contemporary Iran.

Author : Farzin Vejdani
Publisher : Stanford University Press
Page : 284 pages
File Size : 44,7 Mb
Release : 2014-11-05
Category : History
ISBN : 9780804792813

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Making History in Iran by Farzin Vejdani Pdf

Iranian history was long told through a variety of stories and legend, tribal lore and genealogies, and tales of the prophets. But in the late nineteenth century, new institutions emerged to produce and circulate a coherent history that fundamentally reshaped these fragmented narratives and dynastic storylines. Farzin Vejdani investigates this transformation to show how cultural institutions and a growing public-sphere affected history-writing, and how in turn this writing defined Iranian nationalism. Interactions between the state and a cross-section of Iranian society—scholars, schoolteachers, students, intellectuals, feminists, and poets—were crucial in shaping a new understanding of nation and history. This enlightening book draws on previously unexamined primary sources—including histories, school curricula, pedagogical materials, periodicals, and memoirs—to demonstrate how the social locations of historians writ broadly influenced their interpretations of the past. The relative autonomy of these historians had a direct bearing on whether history upheld the status quo or became an instrument for radical change, and the writing of history became central to debates on social and political reform, the role of women in society, and the criteria for citizenship and nationality. Ultimately, this book traces how contending visions of Iranian history were increasingly unified as a centralized Iranian state emerged in the early twentieth century.

Author : Touraj Atabaki
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 352 pages
File Size : 49,6 Mb
Release : 2009-06-17
Category : History
ISBN : 9780857731876

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Iran in the 20th Century by Touraj Atabaki Pdf

Political upheaval has marked Iran's history throughout the twentieth century. Wars, revolutions, coups and the impact of modernism have shaped Iran's historiography, as they have the country's history. Originally based on oral and written sources, which underpinned traditional genealogical and dynastic history, Iran's historiography was transformed in the early 20th century with the development of a 'new' school of presenting history. Here emphasis shifted from the anecdotal story-telling genre to social, political, economic, cultural and religious history-writing. A new understanding of the nation state and the importance of identity and foreign relations in defining Iran's place in the modern world all served to transform the perspective of Iranian historiography. Touraj Atabaki here brings together a range of rich contributions from international scholars who cover the leading themes of the historiography of 20th-century Iran, including constitutional reform and revolution, literature and architecture, identity, women and gender, nationalism, modernism, Orientalism, Marxism and Islamism.

Author : Haideh Moghissi
Publisher : Springer
Page : 224 pages
File Size : 52,5 Mb
Release : 2016-07-27
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9781349252336

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Populism and Feminism in Iran by Haideh Moghissi Pdf

Women presented the first effective challenge to the Islamic regime and the clerical authority in post-revolutionary Iran. Women's activism in support of their legal rights and personal freedom, however, did not develop into a strong movement against the rising fundamentalism. The Iranian socialists did not support women's autonomous organizations. The convergence of the Left's populism with Islamic populism, and the influence of the Iranian/Shiite political culture that promotes male authority and female submission, could not reconcile with women's claims to individual rights, choice, and personal freedom and their struggle for autonomy and self-determination in private or public life.

Author : Menahem Merhavy
Publisher : Syracuse University Press
Page : 277 pages
File Size : 52,5 Mb
Release : 2019-12-03
Category : History
ISBN : 9780815654919

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National Symbols in Modern Iran by Menahem Merhavy Pdf

Now more than ever the role of icons and monuments in shaping a national identity is a subject of vital importance to scholars of both nationalism and memory studies. While the nation-state undoubtedly has a powerful influence on a society’s cultural memory, it cannot necessarily control the ways in which icons are perceived. Once created, national symbols and perceptions of them take on a life of their own. Taking an innovative approach to the study of Iranian nationalism, Merhavy examines the way symbols from Iran’s past have played an important role in the struggles between political, religious, and ideological movements over legitimacy in the last five decades. Using a rich variety of primary sources, he traces the process by which these symbols have been appropriated, rejected, and reinterpreted by the Pahlavi state, the Islamic opposition, and finally, the Islamic Republic. In doing so, this volume contributes to our understanding of cultural symbols that survive political upheavals, dramatic and significant as they may be. It also contributes to the growing body of literature that challenges the state centered perspective of much research on modern Iran by exposing the ever growing importance of civil society in the Iranian public sphere from the second half of the twentieth century onward.

Author : Emily L. Blout
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 233 pages
File Size : 49,8 Mb
Release : 2023-01-26
Category : History
ISBN : 9780755639052

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Media and Power in Modern Iran by Emily L. Blout Pdf

Successive Iranian leaders have struggled to navigate the fraught political-cultural space of media in the Islamic Republic–skirting the line between embracing Western communications technologies and rejecting them, between condemning social networking sites as foreign treachery and promoting themselves on Facebook. How does a regime that originally derived its hegemony from the ability to mass communicate its ideology protect its ideological dominance in a media environment defined by hybridity, hyper-connectivity, and near constant change? More broadly, what is the role of media in the construction and maintenance of power in Iran? This book addresses these questions by examining the institutions, policies, and discourses of two political regimes over the course of nearly eight decades. Drawing from over 3,000 primary source documents and digital artifacts in Persian and English, including formerly classified material hidden deep in the archives, this book offers a history of media in Iran across political regimes and media paradigms– from the public's first encounter with mass communication in the 1940s, to the dawn of digital media in the 1990s, to internet and mobile telephony today. At the same time, the book trains a keen eye on contemporary politics. With foundations in sociology and political science, Media and Power in Modern Iran offers trenchant insight into the present ruling establishment– a political regime born from what has become known as the "first televised revolution."

Author : James Barry
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 325 pages
File Size : 43,6 Mb
Release : 2018-10-11
Category : History
ISBN : 9781108429047

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Armenian Christians in Iran by James Barry Pdf

Examines Iran's Armenian community, shedding light on Muslim-Christian relations in Iran since the 1979 revolution.

Author : Ailreza Asgharzadeh
Publisher : Springer
Page : 249 pages
File Size : 46,6 Mb
Release : 2007-06-11
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9780230604889

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Iran and the Challenge of Diversity by Ailreza Asgharzadeh Pdf

This interrogates the racist construction of Aria and Aryanism in an Iranian context, arguing that these concepts gave the Indo-European speaking Persian ethnic group an advantage over Iran's non-Persian nationalities and communities.

Author : Ilan Berman
Publisher : Encounter Books
Page : 256 pages
File Size : 55,6 Mb
Release : 2016-12-06
Category : History
ISBN : 9781594038983

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Iran's Deadly Ambition by Ilan Berman Pdf

Are we on the cusp of détente with Iran? Conventional wisdom certainly seems to believe so. Since the start of diplomacy between the Islamic Republic and the P5+1 powers (the United States, France, England, Russia, China, Germany) in November 2013, hopes have been running high for a historic reconciliation of Iran’s clerical regime with the West. Yet there is ample reason for skepticism that the United States and its allies can truly curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions by diplomatic means. Moreover, the West’s current focus on Iran’s nuclear program is deeply dangerous insofar as it fails to recognize—let alone address—Iran’s other international activities or its foreign policy aims. Those objectives are global, and they continue to grow in scope and menace. In this sobering book, Ilan Berman illuminates the multiple dimensions of the Iranian threat and exposes the perils of lodging confidence in diplomacy with the Islamic Republic.

Author : Parviz Kambin
Publisher : Publishamerica Incorporated
Page : 108 pages
File Size : 42,5 Mb
Release : 2007-05
Category : History
ISBN : 1424170397

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Iran by Parviz Kambin Pdf

This book reveals an inside view of the complex history and culture of Iran and how the events have affected the thinking and behavior of its people. The glory of the pre-Islamic Persian kingship, their belief system, and their respect for art and human rights are eloquently presented, and the historical events are highlighted. The contribution of Islam is discussed, and the effect of foreign meddling in Iranian affairs is reviewed. The author presents the view that the incompatibility of Islam and civil laws has hampered unity and progress in this ancient society.

Author : Alma Keshavarz
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 233 pages
File Size : 52,7 Mb
Release : 2023-09-07
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9781350255685

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The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps by Alma Keshavarz Pdf

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has yet to be directly analysed as a military security complex with significant political influence. This book explores Iran's IRGC and Qods Force, focussing on its development following the Iranian Revolution, and how they have skilfully transformed Iran's defense doctrine to fight an irregular war that challenges the US and the West. Chapters detail the birth of the IRGC, its political development and influence within Iran, its relationship to militias and terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah, and involvement in Yemen and Iraq. Keshavarz brings first-hand knowledge of what government institutions are looking for with respect to the IRGC, outlining Iran's hybrid war capabilities that the US and West often misunderstand or miss altogether, in order to provide a foreign policy analysis that identifies the challenges of Iran's irregular capabilities and what measures are needed to combat it.

Author : Reza Banakar
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 304 pages
File Size : 46,6 Mb
Release : 2015-12-18
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9780857728289

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Driving Culture in Iran by Reza Banakar Pdf

Iran has one of the highest rates of road traffic accidents worldwide and according to a recent UNICEF report, the current rate of road accidents in Iran is 20 times more than the world average. Using extensive interviews with a variety of Iranians from a range of backgrounds, this book explores their dangerous driving habits and the explanations for their disregard for traffic laws. It argues that Iranians' driving behaviour is an indicator of how they have historically related to each other and to their society at large, and how they have maintained a form of social order through law, culture and religion. By considering how ordinary Iranians experience the traffic problem in their cities and how they describe traffic rules, laws, authorities and the rights of other citizens, Driving Culture in Iran provides an original and valuable insight into Iranian legal, social and political culture.

Author : Moritz Deutschmann
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 266 pages
File Size : 49,8 Mb
Release : 2015-12-22
Category : History
ISBN : 9781317385301

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Iran and Russian Imperialism by Moritz Deutschmann Pdf

Rather than a centralized state, Iran in the nineteenth century was a delicate balance between tribal groups, urban merchant communities, religious elites, and an autocratic monarchy. While Russia gained an increasingly dominant political role in Iran over the course of this century, Russian influence was often challenged by banditry on the roads, riots in the cities, and the seeming arbitrariness of the Shah. Iran and Russian Imperialism develops a comprehensive picture of Russia’s historical entanglements with one of its most important neighbours in Asia. It recounts how the Russian Empire strived to gain political influence at the Persian court, promote Russian trade, and secure the enormous southern borders of the empire. Using hitherto often neglected documents from archives in Russia and Georgia and reading them against the grain, this book reveals the complex reactions of different groups in Iranian society to Russian imperialism. As it turns out, the Iranians were, in the words of the Russian orientalist Konstantin Smirnov, "ideal anarchists," whose resistance to imperial domination, as well as to centralized state institutions more generally, impacted developments in the region in the century to come. Iran’s troubled relationship with the wider world continues to be a topic of considerable interest to historians, yet little focus has been given to Russia’s historical connections to Iran. This book thus represents a valuable contribution to Iranian and Russian History, as well as International Relations.