Customer Reviews

Khomeinism: Essays on the Islamic Republic

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Abrahamian's essays from 1993 argue that Khomeini was an astute religious Populist who did not micro manage the revolution but helped motivate, encourage, and lead a revolt that was against irreligious Royalty, foreign interests, cultural debasement of Islamic Iran and provided authenticity for Iranians.

The "Paranoid Style" in Iranian politics played a significant role in the revolution and also in the difficulty of interpretation since. Another chapter traces May Day celebrations (and what reminds one of "socialistic realist" art posters and stamps) to show evolution from elements of a worker's revolution to a nationalist bourgeois realism. The evolving perceptions of property and state (another essay) puts perspective on rhetoric of people's rights that never threatened private property but came to more strongly support a national economy so long as Iranian culture and religion were secure and foreign interests well controlled - pragmatism did not replace principle.

The most important essay argues convincingly that the "Fundamentalist" label explains little about the character or the success of the revolution. (This should be a strong reminder to the labelers of our own time who feel they explain and understand by name calling.)

Essays, perhaps necessarily, sometimes overlap and are uneven. At times they could have been briefer and tighter. A reader would do well to have some basic picture of Iranian history at least back into the 19th century. Yet the book has considerable value and the first and last essays on the "Populism" of the revolution and the "Paranoid Style" of Iranian politics are of special value.

I wish everyone who talks about iran would first read this book. it is very balanaced, and thoughtful. It has original ideas formulated by Abrahamian. these ideas came from reading khomieni in farsi. not from prejudice, or from heresay. the author did his research, and presented the revolution and the transformation of khomeini's ideas pre and post revolution the best way i have yet to read.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in gaining insight into iran from someone who actually has spent much of his life objectively and with wisdom studing it, and did research by reading the most important sources in farsi!

Like most students of Iran, Abrahamian brings the academic's bias against religion having much importance. He prefers to see Khomeini's ideas "as a flexible political movement." But discount this bias and you'll find Abrahamian makes a strong and original case that "the behavior of Khomeini and the Islamic Republic has been determined less by scriptural principles than by immediate political, social, and economic needs." He makes this case the old-fashioned way, through a close reading of texts and study of events. Abrahamian's intimate knowledge of Iran imbues his short study with the sort of insight all too rare in the study of Iran; and it's certainly one of the most important books on Iran to appear in English in some years. The author catalogues the profound changes in Khomeini's thinking that took place in the era 1965-70, when he replaced many of his traditional Shi'ite beliefs with the trendy notions of European Marxism (as mediated by Leftist Iranian intellectuals). Abrahamian demonstrates the evolution of the mullahs' relations with the Left through a close analysis of May Day celebrations. Over and over again, he shows how Khomeini changed his views to fit current needs, contradicting not only himself but some of Islam's most basic tenets (such as the priority of Sacred Law over raison d'état). Indeed, the sainted ayatollah apparently stuck with just one tenet through his entire career: the inviolability of private property.

Middle East Quarterly, June 1994

those of us in the west would like to think that what the media says about iran is true. i am sorry to say thats not the case, the book gives us a far better idea of what actually went on in iran. We get to see what kind of a person Khomeini really was a vicious, shrewd, angry old man.

Like most students of Iran, Abrahamian brings the academic's bias against religion having much importance. He prefers to see Khomeini's ideas "as a flexible political movement." But discount this bias and you'll find Abrahamian makes a strong and original case that "the behavior of Khomeini and the Islamic Republic has been determined less by scriptural principles than by immediate political, social, and economic needs." He makes this case the old-fashioned way, through a close reading of texts and study of events. Abrahamian's intimate knowledge of Iran imbues his short study with the sort of insight all too rare in the study of Iran; and it's certainly one of the most important books on Iran to appear in English in some years. The author catalogues the profound changes in Khomeini's thinking that took place in the era 1965-70, when he replaced many of his traditional Shi'ite beliefs with the trendy notions of European Marxism (as mediated by Leftist Iranian intellectuals). Abrahamian demonstrates the evolution of the mullahs' relations with the Left through a close analysis of May Day celebrations. Over and over again, he shows how Khomeini changed his views to fit current needs, contradicting not only himself but some of Islam's most basic tenets (such as the priority of Sacred Law over raison d'état). Indeed, the sainted ayatollah apparently stuck with just one tenet through his entire career: the inviolability of private property.

Middle East Quarterly, June 1994