Pahlavi Iran and the Politics of Occidentalism

Rezensionen / Stimmen

It has been 40 years since the Iranian Islamic Revolution, and scholars continue to try to figure out what happened. The usual assumption is that the revolution represented a break from the pro-Western policies of the Shah's government. But in Pahlavi Iran and the Politics of Occidentalism, Shakibi argues that in fact in the last years of the monarchy the Shah himself had begun to develop anti-Western and pro-Iranian policies ... The author finds useful comparisons to the French Revolution, and in particular compares the rule of the Shah to the reign of the Romanovs in pre-Soviet Russia. In making his case Shakibi draws on sources in English, Russian, and Persian, including the archives of the Rastakhiz newspaper ... Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students, researchers, faculty. * CHOICE * An extremely thoughtful and interesting work by a scholar who combines deep knowledge and empathy for the world of Pahlavi- era Iran with sharp analysis and informed comparisons, above all with Imperial Russia. * Professor Dominic Lieven, University of Cambridge, UK * In this ground-breaking work, Zhand Shakibi provides us with a detailed intellectual history of the Pahlavi state's anti-West Occidentalism, marking a major contribution to the emerging field of Pahlavi Studies. In doing so, Shakibi compels us to re-examine many familiar tropes in the historiography of late Pahlavi Iran and to consider continuities in the longue duree of modern Iranian history, which transcend the 1979 Revolution. * Roham Alvandi, Associate Professor of International History, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK *