To understand recent Iranian events, most commentators focus on the
interplay between traditional forces, especially the clergy, and
the newly-emerged middle and working classes. Baruch College (CUNY)
historian Abrahamian, following this same path, emphasizes what he
sees as a paradox: Iran's Constitutional Revolution of 1905-1909,
which overthrew the Qajar dynasty, was led by the intelligentsia -
who organized Western-style political parties around secular
ideologies of socialism, nationalism, and liberalism; the
revolution of 1977-79, on the other hand, was led by the
traditional clergy using an ideology of Islamic fundamentalism. To
explain this paradox, Abrahamian recounts the history of Iran
between the two revolutions, with a lot of detail on political
parties and politicians, on social stratification and class
formation. The communist, or Tudeh party gets the most attention.
(The book started as a study of the Tudeh, Abrahamian notes -
counseling uninterested readers to skim the chapters devoted solely
to it.) We discover, not surprisingly, that the Tudeh was a
class-based party from its inception - supported by the
intellectuals, but grounded in the industrial working class (mill
and oil workers) and wage-earners in the bazaars. It also made
headway among Christian and national minorities in the country, but
had little success among the rural masses. The Tudeh, however, did
not make the revolution of 1977-1979; and when Abrahamian gets
around to solving his paradox, the solution turns out to have
hardly been worth the effort. After chronicling the various
oppositions to the Shah and their sources, his best explanation for
why the bazaar merchants, "modern" middle class, working class,
slum dwellers, et al. wound up together under Khomeini's banner is
that he promised everything to everyone and had the charisma to
pull it off. Abrahamian holds out the hope that the Tudeh's past
success in organizing a secular movement could bode well for the
post-Khomeini future when the conflicts between traditional and
modern forces re-emerge. But without an analysis of changes
presently underway (if any), there is no assurance that the future
will repeat the past. For Iran scholars, a helpful study; others
will find this a traditional scholarly work dressed up to be
relevant. (Kirkus Reviews)
Emphasizing the interaction between political organizations and
social forces, Ervand Abrahamian discusses Iranian society and
politics during the period between the Constitutional Revolution of
1905-1909 and the Islamic Revolution of 1977-1979. Presented here
is a study of the emergence of horizontal divisions, or
socio-economic classes, in a country with strong vertical divisions
based on ethnicity, religious ideology, and regional particularism.
Professor Abrahamian focuses on the class and ethnic roots of the
major radical movements in the modem era, particularly the
constitutional movement of the 1900s, the communist Tudeh party of
the 1940s, the nationalist struggle of the early 1950s, and the
Islamic upsurgence of the 1970s.
In this examination of the social bases of Iranian politics,
Professor Abrahamian draws on archives of the British Foreign
Office and India Office that have only recently been opened;
newspaper, memoirs, and biographies published in Tehran between
1906 and 1980; proceedings of the Iranian Majles and Senate;
interviews with retired and active politicians; and pamphlets,
books, and periodicals distributed by exiled groups in Europe and
North America in the period between 1953 and 1980.
Professor Abrahamian explores the impact of socio-economic
change on the political structure, especially under the reigns of
Reza Shah and Muhammad Reza Shah, and throws fresh light on the
significance of the Tudeh party and the failure of the Shah's
regime from 1953 to 1978.
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