Thoughtlessness and Decadence in Iran
Title | Thoughtlessness and Decadence in Iran PDF eBook |
Author | Alireza Shomali |
Publisher | State University of New York Press |
Pages | 482 |
Release | 2019-04-01 |
Genre | Political Science |
ISBN | 143847380X |
Bridges Western and non-Western political thought to address the problem of democracy and political decadance in contemporary Iran and, by implication, similar Islamic societies. Political decay in Islamic societies has for the most part been the subject of structural analyses while philosophical studies have been rare, often speculative and deterministic. Thoughtlessness and Decadence in Iran explores from a theoretical perspective the problem of democracy deficit—or, political decadence—in contemporary Iran and, by implication, in present-day Middle Eastern societies. This decadence, the book argues, is in part a religion-based decadence, and deliverance from it requires collective thoughtfulness about religion. Alireza Shomali conceptualizes the Iranian Reality in terms of a lack of not only good life but also thinking of good living. This thoughtlessness means dissolution of critical consciousness and, as such, it heralds escalating decadence. At this moment of rapid decay, the book argues, thought must become relevant to society: the communicative practice of thinking must emerge to examine the pathologies of a religiously administrated life. Opening a dialogue between Adorno, Strauss, Farabi and Razi, among others, Shomali underlines the critical points of similarity and difference between these thinkers and envisions a “local” emancipatory project that, noting the specifics of the Iranian case, takes lessons from the Western experience without blind imitation. Alireza Shomali is Associate Professor of Political Science at Wheaton College. He is the author of Politics and the Criteria of Truth.
Thoughtlessness and Decadence in Iran
Title | Thoughtlessness and Decadence in Iran PDF eBook |
Author | Alireza Shomali |
Publisher | SUNY Press |
Pages | 482 |
Release | 2019-04-01 |
Genre | History |
ISBN | 1438473796 |
Bridges Western and non-Western political thought to address the problem of democracy and political decadence in contemporary Iran and, by implication, similar Islamic societies. Political decay in Islamic societies has for the most part been the subject of structural analyses while philosophical studies have been rare, often speculative and deterministic. Thoughtlessness and Decadence in Iran explores from a theoretical perspective the problem of democracy deficit—or, political decadence—in contemporary Iran and, by implication, in present-day Middle Eastern societies. This decadence, the book argues, is in part a religion-based decadence, and deliverance from it requires collective thoughtfulness aboutreligion. Alireza Shomali conceptualizes the Iranian Reality in terms of a lack of not only good life but also thinking of good living. This thoughtlessness means dissolution of critical consciousness and, as such, it heralds escalating decadence. At this moment of rapid decay, the book argues, thought must becomerelevant to society: the communicative practice of thinking must emerge to examine the pathologies of a religiously administrated life. Opening a dialogue between Adorno, Strauss, Farabi, and Razi, among others, Shomali underlines the critical points of similarity and difference between these thinkers and envisions a “local” emancipatory project that, noting the specifics of the Iranian case, takes lessons from the Western experience without blind imitation. “The book is global in its vision, but also clearly local in its immersion in the philosophies, values, and culture of Iran and Iranian Islam. This unique characteristic helps its prescription become local, and simultaneously stay away from nativist, third-worldist and decolonialist discourses.” — Abdolkarim Soroush, author of The Expansion of Prophetic Experience
Despotism in Iran
Title | Despotism in Iran PDF eBook |
Author | Hassan Ghazi Moradi |
Publisher | Dorrance Publishing |
Pages | 379 |
Release | 2017-02-13 |
Genre | Political Science |
ISBN | 1480933821 |
Despotism in Iran Translated by M. Reza Abrishamchian Written by Hassan Ghazi To realize just why it is necessary to understand despotism in Iran you only have to remember that despotism has a 2500 year history. To believe that it can be quickly abolished is nothing but a naïve dream. In Despotism in Iran the “how” of despotic rule is dissected, rather than the “why.” The “why” is related to the history of Iran and is not a concern in our time. In modern times there is no historical necessity for this type of government to rely on. Many of the assertions in Despotism in Iran apply to other nations and countries with similar backgrounds who have suffered or currently suffer under despotic regimes.
The Sacred Republic
Title | The Sacred Republic PDF eBook |
Author | Mehran Kamrava |
Publisher | Hurst Publishers |
Pages | 378 |
Release | 2023-05-26 |
Genre | Political Science |
ISBN | 1805260936 |
This book presents a comprehensive, detailed analysis of the establishment, evolution and current significance of different institutions in today’s Islamic Republic of Iran. The volume draws on the insights of a number of Iran experts to examine their establishment, functions and evolution, as a means of understanding Iranian politics and society. The Sacred Republic‘s specific focus is on the key formal institutions of the state through which the Islamic Republic exercises power, namely the velayat-e faqih: the judiciary, the presidency, the parliament, elections, the Revolutionary Guards, and the foreign policy establishment. Despite significant work on Iranian politics in recent decades, few studies have focused on state institutions, their resilience, or the reasons for and manner of institutional change. Through historical institutionalism and comparative historical analysis, the contributors to this book together fill a glaring gap in the study of Iran’s political institutions, offering significant insights for the theoretical literature on comparative politics, Middle Eastern politics, and Iranian Studies.
The Oxford Handbook of the Sociology of the Middle East
Title | The Oxford Handbook of the Sociology of the Middle East PDF eBook |
Author | Armando Salvatore |
Publisher | Oxford University Press |
Pages | 940 |
Release | 2022 |
Genre | Social Science |
ISBN | 0190087471 |
"Book Abstract: The sociology of the Middle East has been an expanding field of inquiry since the aftermath of WWII when phenomena as diverse as urbanization, internal and international migration, and peasant societies attracted the attention of scholars working on the region. The Middle East became central in key sociological debates on modernization theory and the critical responses. The Oxford Handbook of the Sociology of the Middle East connects this historical trajectory with the emergence of the sociology of Islam, inspired by Max Weber. It explores how within the global community, the Middle East has become a terrain of heightened concern within the post-Cold War context, where the promising rise of civic (and often religiously-inspired) sociopolitical movements in the 1980s and 1990s has been slowly overwhelmed by the affirmation of jihadist networks, authoritarian states, and complex supranational security apparatuses. This foundational volume starts by engaging in a critical examination of the field itself, starting with a historical sociology of the making of the idea itself of the Middle East and linking it with the legacy of colonialism and the evolving dynamics of global power. In repurposing the sociology of the Middle East within a growing interdisciplinary multifield, the Handbook develops the critical argument that the exploration of social dynamics in the Middle East cannot be disjoined from the analysis of culture and politics. By connecting the vexed state-society relations in the region with movements of transformation and the affirmation of rights and creativity in the public arenas, it provides a comprehensive perspective to investigate longstanding regional and new transregional and global dynamics and their impact on the life of people in the region. Keywords: sociology of the Middle East, sociology of Islam, Max Weber, historical sociology, Middle East and North Africa region, MENA"--
Iran
Title | Iran PDF eBook |
Author | Fakhreddin Azimi |
Publisher | Palgrave Macmillan |
Pages | 433 |
Release | 1989-01-01 |
Genre | History |
ISBN | 9780312031923 |
Post-Islamist Political Theory
Title | Post-Islamist Political Theory PDF eBook |
Author | Meysam Badamchi |
Publisher | Springer |
Pages | 223 |
Release | 2018-05-12 |
Genre | Philosophy |
ISBN | 9783319866352 |
This book deals with the concept of post-Islamism from a mainly philosophical perspective, using political liberalism as elaborated by John Rawls as the key interpretive tool. What distinguishes this book from most scholarship in Iranian studies is that it primarily deals with the projects of Iranian intellectuals from a normative perspective as the concept is understood by analytical philosophers. The volume includes analyses of the strengths and weakness of the arguments underlying each thinker’s ideas, rather than looking for their historical and sociological origins, genealogy, etc. Each chapter develops a particular conjectural argument for the possibility of an overlapping consensus between Islam and political liberalism, though the arguments presented draw upon different Islamic, particularly Shia, resources. Thus, while Shabestari and Soroush primarily reason from a modernist theological or kalami perspective, M.H.Tabatabai and Mehdi Haeri Yazdi’s arguments are mainly based on traditional Islamic philosophy and Quranic exegesis. While Kadivar, An-Naim and Fanaei are post-Islamist in the exact sense of the term, Malekian goes beyond typical post-Islamism by proposing a theory for spirituality that constrains religion within the boundaries of enlightenment thought. Throughout the book, specific attention is given to Ferrara and March’s readings of political liberalism. Although the book’s chapters constitute a whole, they can also be read independently if the reader is only curious about particular intellectuals whose political theories are discussed.