The Pursuit of Pleasure: Drugs and Stimulants in Iranian History, 1500-1900 (Hardcover)

~ Rudi Matthee (Author)
Key Phrases: royal drinking, tobacco revolt, sur les ressources, Safavid Iran, Shah Tahmasb, Ottoman Empire (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

This is an extremely successful foray into the social history of Iran in the early modern period. This is a very rich and readable book. It is especially good at showing the wider significance of the pursuit of pleasure.
(Michael Pearson Itinerario )

As a work of social and economic history, this book sets a high standard. . . . [M]ost readers will be more than satisfied by this lucid, precise, and information-packed volume.
(Richard W. Bulliet American Historical Review )

Review

This excellent, well-written book is likely to become a classic work on the subject of drugs and stimulants both in Iran and the wider Islamic world. It will have a readership far beyond those individuals interested principally in Iranian or Middle Eastern studies. The author not only discusses the use of the commodities but he also analyzes the social practice of consumption, the persistent tension between social practice and religious norms exemplified by the use of and attitude toward wine, drugs, and stimulants, and the ways in which Iranian consumption was related to the shifting patterns of international trade.
(Stephen F. Dale, Ohio State University, author of "The Garden of the Eight Paradises: Babur and the Culture of Empire in Central Asia, Afghanistan, and India (1483-1530)" )

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 366 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (July 5, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691118558
• ISBN-13: 978-0691118550
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #298,477 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Historiographic Work, October 24, 2005

By	Khodadad REZAKHANI "Vis Historica" (Berkeley, CA, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Pursuit of Pleasure: Drugs and Stimulants in Iranian History, 1500-1900 (Hardcover)

Much of what is written about Iran is still concerned with political history. The fact is that the historiography of Iran is still well behind that of Europe. Things that are now common when looking at European history are still unknown in the Iranian one. Annale School methods and other modern historiographic methods are virtually unknown.

Prof. Matthee's work, however, uses these methods very well. He uses the theme of narcotics and drinks to provide a picture of the Iranian hitory in the pre-modern era. He explains the role of the drinks such as coffee and tea in forming social institutions such as coffee houses, investigates the origins of instruments such as water-pipe, and argues for the role of the trade in coffee and drugs in connecting Iran to the rest of the world at the time, following the trace of Globalization in the pre-modern times. His book is both a gem of factual information, as well as a textbook of methodology.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in Iranian history, but also to those interested in concepts of Global/World History, pre-Modern globalization and trade, pre-modern social history, as well as those looking for an excellent work of historical research and scholarship.

1 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Iran, March 9, 2006

By	Peyman ADLDOUSTI (England) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

According to the author of this book, shah Abbas was born in harem and died as a result of alcohol. Next interesting point was that Qezel Bash smoked weed, eat human and drank booz. All in all, everyone in Iran was drunk, and eating human. I began to have my doubt about this book as a valid source of information.