Modern Iran Since 1921 The Pahlavis & After

Modern Iran

Ali Ansari

 

"...Ansari has written a straightforward, though skilfully analytical, history of Iran..."     Times Literary Supplement (praise for the first edition)

 

 

Today’s Iran is rarely out of the headlines. Labelled by George W. Bush as a part of his ‘axis of evil’ and perceived as a real nuclear threat by some, Iran is increasingly seen as an enemy of the West.

 

With so much attention paid to this country it is inexplicable that we know so very little about it. Indeed, few countries have proved so persistently incomprehensible to Western analysis as Iran. But an understanding of modern Iran is not impossible with a clear understanding of its history.

 

Modern Iran fills the gaps in our understanding with a comprehensive analysis and explanation of political, social and economic developments in Iran during the twentieth century. 

 

Arguing that Iranian history has been significantly shaped by its relations with the‘great powers’, Ansari provides an important reassessment of key events such as the fall of the Pahlavi dynasty, the 1979 Revolution and the origins of the Iran-Iraq war in this strategically sensitive country.

 

Using a wide range of foreign and Iranian sources including interviews with key players, Modern Iran traces the rise of the Reform Movement and the efforts to promote Islamic democracy. The successes and failures of the Khatami Presidency are assessed with skill and clarity and the Iran in the aftermath of 9/11 is comprehensively examined.

 

Between reform and revolution, authoritarianism and democratisation, the history of modern Iran reflects the struggles of an ancient state as it seeks to define itself in the modern world. It is a history of immediate relevance to any interested in the future of the Middle East.

 

 

Ali Ansari is Professor of Iranian History at the University of St Andrews. His most recent publications include Iran, Islam and Democracy: The Politics of Managing Change (2000) and Confronting Iran: The Failure of American Foreign Policy and the Roots of Mistrust (2006).

Straddled between the world's two major energy basins, the Persian Gulf and the Caspian Sea, and possessing a rich reservoir of hydrocarbon resources as well as diverse minerals, Iran has always been economically significant. The Islamic Revolution thrust the country back onto the political centre-stage, and dramatically altered relations between Iran and the West.This book looks at these developments within an historical context. It charts how Iran sought to respond to the challenge of the West through reform and revolution, and to reverse the deline of the previous century with an ambitious programme of development. Combining detailed historical narrative with comprehensive analysis and explanation, Ali Ansari presents a new interpretation of the complex cultural polity that is modern Iran.

A renowned expert looks at the painful birth of modern Iran, the political awakening of Iranian people and Iran's current position in the global arena.

 

§         A comprehensive history of Iran from 1921 to the completion of the Khatami Presidency in 2005

§         Puts recent developments in historical context

§         Shows how Iran's modern history has been shaped by its relations with the great powers

§         Places the Khatami Reform movement in the context of broader historical trends

§         Shows how the Reform Movement was the latest in a wave of democratic surges that opened initially with the Constitutional Movement in 1906.

Whether as friend or foe, Iran continues to play a pivotal role in a strategically vital area of the world.  Straddled between the world's two major energy basins, the Persian Gulf and the Caspian Sea, and possessing a rich reservoir of hydrocarbon resources as well as diverse minerals and a large and growing population, Iran remains important in economic terms.  However, the Islamic Revolution of 1979 thrust Iran back onto the political centre stage and dramatically altered the relationship between Iran and the West. Modern Iran since 1921 places these developments in an historical context, and looks at how Iran sought to respond to the challenge of the West through reform and revolution, to reverse the decline of the previous century with a development programme that would catapult the country back into the top division.  This new interpretation combines detailed historical narrative with comprehensive analysis and explanation of political, social and economic developments in Iran during the 20th century.  It emphasises those factors which have helped shape attitudes and policies in an effort to explain the complex cultural polity that is modern Iran. Ali M. Ansari is Lecturer in Political History of the Middle East, University of Durham.  He is the author of Iran, Islam and Democracy: The Politics of Managing Change (2000).

Ali Ansari is currently Reader in history at the University of St Andrews.  He is a London-born Iranian with much of his family still in Iran where he goes regularly to see them. As an Iranian himself, he is in a unique position to explain the history of his own country to a Western student audience.

Acknowledgements

Glossary

Chronology of Modern Iran

Map

1. Introduction

2. Reza Khan and the Establishment of the Pahlavi State

3. Reza Shah: Modernisation and Tradition, 1926-41

4. Political Pluralism and the Ascendancy of Nationalism, 1941-53

5. The Consolidation of Power, 1953-60

6. The 'White Revolution'

7. Towards the Great Civilisation

8. Revolution, War and 'Islamic Republic'

9. Conclusion: A Century of Reform and Revolution

Guide to Further Research

Select Bibliography

Index