The Quest for Democracy in Iran: A Century of Struggle against Authoritarian Rule (Hardcover)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Twentieth-century Iranian history provides wonderful examples of recurring themes of revolution, authoritarian rule, and the attempt to create democratic institutions. In this landmark book, Fakhreddin Azimi illuminates a subject of the greatest importance to Iran, the Middle East, and, indeed, the rest of the world. Elegantly written and deeply informative, The Quest for Democracy in Iran is a must read.
--Roger Owen, Harvard University (20081201)

Azimi's impressive book offers a penetrating analysis of what sustained authoritarian rule in Iran over the last one hundred years and how the aspirations and quest for social justice, the rule of law, and freedom have remained both frustrated and resilient. He shows that the key hopes and agendas associated with the 1906 Constitutional Revolution remain as salient as ever.
--Ehsan Yarshater, Columbia University

The Quest for Democracy in Iran is a book of immense erudition, yet it is also a work of passion and sympathy for the Iranian people. A rigorous and fair-minded assessment of the Pahlavi dynasty and the revolution under Khomeni, it will command the attention of the general public as well as scholars.
--Wm. Roger Louis, University of Texas at Austin

For Azimi, all Iranian history after 1905 is an attempt to fulfill, partially accommodate or circumvent the ideals of a constitutional movement that placed popular representation at the fore of its priorities. He traces how at various moments public alienation and resentment have been articulated or expressed and finally, how "a culture of confrontation" emerged. His book goes a long way toward recuperating a history of Iranian democracy that has been expunged by Orientalists who wonder aloud if there is something about Muslim lands that makes them inhospitable to democracy or, alternatively, those who have dismissed periods of hectic parliamentary activity as mere chaos.
--Negar Azimi (The Nation )

Fakhreddin Azimi's The Quest for Democracy in Iran is particularly strong on retrieving the importance of the Constitutional Revolution and threading it through to the Islamic Republic's current dialectic between republicanism and theocracy.
--David Gardner (Financial Times )

The sophistication of [Azimi's] concepts of democracy and authoritarianism, his command of the sources, and his intellectual clarity and energy have combined to produce an insightful book that will draw the attention of all interested in Iranian culture and history.
--L. J. Alderink (Choice )

Product Description

The Constitutional Revolution of 1906 launched Iran as a pioneer in a broad-based movement to establish democratic rule in the non-Western world. In a book that provides essential context for understanding modern Iran, Fakhreddin Azimi traces a century of struggle for the establishment of representative government.

The promise of constitutional rule was cut short in the 1920s with the rise of the Pahlavi dynasty. Reza Shah, whose despotic rule Azimi deftly captures, maintained the façade of a constitutional monarch but greeted any challenge with an iron fist: “I will eliminate you,” he routinely barked at his officials. In 1941, fearful of losing control of the oil-rich region, the Allies forced Reza Shah to abdicate but allowed Mohammad Reza to succeed his father. Though promising to abide by the constitution, the new Shah missed no opportunity to undermine it.

The Anglo-American–backed coup of 1953, which ousted reformist premier Mohammed Mosaddeq, dealt a blow to the constitutionalists. The Shah’s repressive policies and subservience to the United States radicalized both secular and religious opponents, leading to the revolution of 1979. Azimi argues that we have fundamentally misunderstood this event by characterizing it as an “Islamic” revolution when it was in reality the expression of a long-repressed desire for popular sovereignty. This explains why the clerical rulers have failed to counter the growing public conviction that the Islamic Republic, too, is impervious to political reform—and why the democratic impulse that began with the Constitutional Revolution continues to be a potent and resilient force.

(20090425)

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 512 pages
• Publisher: Harvard University Press (April 30, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0674027787
• ISBN-13: 978-0674027787
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #74,290 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #24 in	Books > Nonfiction > Social Sciences > Political Science > Political History
  #31 in	Books > History > Middle East > Iran
  #53 in	Books > Nonfiction > Government > Democracy

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enlightening, December 7, 2008

By	Lori Maher "Justin Maher" (Connecticut, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Iran is almost constantly in the news today.
One cannot but wonder about it, have opinions, and hear and have to respond to opinions. For an informed citizen today, Iran is firmly on the docket of current issues, whether one fears he-who-cannot-be-[properly]-named [President aeh-meh-dee-ne-jhaud, or, "I'm-in-need-(of)-a-job"], or chuckles when he shouts out, "Ya, well I won't meet with McCAIN without preconditions," Iran is there, and always will be - it was an old empire when Mohammed was born, and a great power went the ancient Greek city-states were just coming together. Azimi's book takes an incisive look at the most-currently-pertinent aspect of this great culture: its struggle towards democracy. 512 pages [really more like 450, when one subtracts the end-notes etc.] is concise for a serious addressal of a pivotal issue in a place as complex as Iran. Aside from being a society almost as old as China, Iran is one of the more nuanced and complicated places on earth. Contemporary Iran is hardcore-Islamic. But even within Islam, Iran is a bit of an pariah state - it is Shi'ite, rather than Sunni; even within its own religion, it has a long history of being a staunch minority, willing to oppose overwhelming force for what it thinks is right, including its rights - whether by it is cultural praising of Husayn's valiant martyrdom at Karbala, or a willingness to defy the world to exercise their right to sovereignty, security, and prosperity, whether by proceeding with a nuclear program today, or by resisting the Arab conquests [for centuries in some pockets] long ago. Just a few days ago, one of my Iranian friends was looking at another book of mine. He scoffed at the idea that there is "no compulsion in religion." I argued that although the Arab conquerors didn't always live up to this ideal perfectly, the Visigoths they opposed in al-Andalus axiomatically BELIEVED IN religious compulsion, and so, the Moors were a big improvement for medieval Spain, however imperfect they may have been. My Iranian friend, however, did not judge the Arab conquerors treatment of Zoroastrian Sassanid Persia so kindly, however, and lamented the fall of that Persian Empire. After my Persian-Muslim friend's passionate lecture about Arab-Muslim oppression of Zoroastrian Persia, I told him, "Merci." In one of the more anti-western lands on Earth, the language has absorbed many French words, harkening back to a Persian-French entente, when Iran, and the heart of the West, were good friends. Iran never ceases to amaze. Full of the surprises his culture continues to bear, Azimi's book is full of enlightening - and often unexpected - evidence and arguments. Iran is too complex a civilization to be understood from a headline; a deeper investigation is necessary for anyone who likes to think of themselves as a globally-informed citizen. Azimi's book thoroughly addresses a pivotal issue in the contemporary Middle-East: democracy - what the American government has been trying so hard to create there. Today's Iran is a bit of a theocracy, but also has at least a shell of a working democracy - which is more than most of her neighbors can say. There already is some democracy in the Middle East, which not only arose independent of America but survived our meddling! This book would be fruitful reading for policy-makers in the region. For Middle-Easterners, it is an opportunity to learn from Iran's mistakes, and repeat her successes - lessons from a similar, neighboring country: a closer model than the West's experiences with democracy. For the Westerner concerned with Iran and her region, Azimi's book is full of lessons and critical nuance. A pivotal lesson might be not to derail Iran's own grappling towards democracy on a whim - last time we did, in a 1953 Cold War oil chess-match, the US overthrew an oil-nationalizing leader [oil-nationalizing - like Hugo Chaves, - as scary for an American as Iran's current president, at least]. By overthrowing Iran's democratically-elected (if bad for American oil interests) government, and saddling them with the puppet-shah, we have earned their bitter enmity, as the Shah's reign was better for Washington than for Iran itself. Eventually, the people overthrew the Shah - their anger boiled over, and the world got Khomeini, the Iranian Hostage situation, and other upheavels, which, to say nothing of the strife it as caused Iran, have been bad for America - and therefore this subject is pertinent to even the most isolationist American midlander. Excessive, uninformed meddling in Iran is simply bad for us, and certainly for them. Going in uninformed, policy-makers are shooting everyone in the foot. Unless they want to risk again making things go from slightly-bad to much-worse, say, by ignoring a people's sovereignty so that we can have 20+ years of stability and oil which eventually collapses and devolves into a people's bitter resentment of us, policy makers should read Azimi's book. ...Another like it might suffice, but Azimi's is as good as any, and probably better. His writing informs on a wide range of topics. I met him once, and walked away with my knowledge of German philosophy and comparative psychology, increased - as well as my knowledge of the real subject, Persian history. He has a wide range of ideas to offer. The book is good writing on an important, widely-relevant topic. Within the subject of the world today, Azimi's book should be near the top of anyone's reading-list.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book for scholars, historians, political leaders and anyone interested in an original in-depth account of the Iranian socio-po, January 19, 2009

By	Naj Bassiri (Washington,DC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I just finished reading Azimi's book cover-to-cover! I was forcibly struck by the forthrightness and its daredevil audacity in both style and substance. Seldom have I seen such a vast sum of hard facts packed in concise easy-to-follow parcels.
The book carries you effortlessly through a century of upheavals as if on a magic carpet. Yet, it is an undeniable documentary in condemnation of the "Great Men of Power," foreign and domestic, tragically in denial and betrayal of the very principles they purportedly espouse--freedom, democracy, free enterprise and all! Above all though it's the harbinger of the simple truth that these noble aspirations and struggles, although kept in check for some time, may not perish.
Nothing seems to have escaped Azimi's reticle in his account and analysis of the contemporary Iranian politics. You'll experience several "aha's" on each page and by the time you're finished reading the book you'll find yourself nodding "amen!" If none happens though, I assure you by the time you're done you'll have vastly improved your vocabulary! Azimi has an arsenal of bullet-sharp words at his disposal and he keeps them well-oiled and shiny. When he uses them he hits the bull's eye with a marksman's precision saving the reader pages of explanations. Without this knack the book could have amounted to thousands of pages.
Azimi's book is a precious gift to Iranians and those interested in the Iranian recent history. I know my mind could not possibly go back to its original dimensions after having read it. I expect The Quest for Democracy in Iran to soon be translated into major languages. It is a text for those at the helm.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An eye-opening journey, December 20, 2008

By	massimo (CT) - See all my reviews

This book is a great read! Azimi's book masterfully takes one through the last hundred years of Iranian politics. It is not necessary for one to have prior knowledge of the Iranian political scene before purchasing the book. The book lays out a concise history of the issues which played a role in the collapse of the Shah's regime and led to the Iranian Revolution. The role of oil and imperialism in Iran are also among the main themes of the book. One will see that the imperial governments of the west: England, France and United States along with Russia/Soviet Union all have had a significant influence not only in Iran but also other parts of the region for the past century. Azimi precisely and expertly explores how the powers of the west have manipulated the oil and politics of Iran and the Middle East for their own gains. Subsequent to reading this book one will be much more enlightened about the last hundred years in Iranian Politics. Many of the themes probed by Azimi are relevant to the current situation in Iraq, and offer an insight into what may be Iraq's future.