Iran

"Iran is perhaps the most important poorly understood country in the world--too big and wealthy to ignore, too complex and dynamic to stereotype. Among this generation of historians of Iran, Abbas Amanat stands as a giant. He conveys his enormous learning in eloquent prose, retailing the country's dramatic struggles and displaying gems of its intricate and profound culture with a contagious excitement. Those who wish to understand how an early modern Silk Road monarchy transformed into a contemporary petroleum-fueled theocracy will find no more informed or captivating guide."
—Juan Cole, Richard P. Mitchell Professor of History and Director, Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies, University of Michigan

"This sweeping but richly detailed text is an impressive treatment of the longue durée of Iranian history since 1501. Amanat interweaves narrative with stimulating analysis and commentary on culture, society, and politics in Iran with a skill based on deep scholarship and understanding. It is rare to find a book that will be important for both those new to Iranian studies and those already in the field: the former will find the book an invaluable starting point, and the latter will gain much from engaging with Amanat’s creative and challenging insights and arguments."--Joanna de Groot, University of York                                                                  

"The appearance of this comprehensive and flowing narrative history of early modern and modern Iran could not be more timely, given the deep-seated misunderstandings and prejudices that persist regarding that country. Few scholars could be as well placed to write it as Abbas Amanat, who has devoted many decades to studying Iran's history and culture. This is likely to remain a work of reference that can be appreciated by students as well as interested general readers. An impressive achievement!"--Sanjay Subrahmanyam, Distinguished Professor of History, UCLA

"Lucid, readable, and erudite, Abbas Amanat's flowing narrative uses comparisons and connections with the surrounding world to reveal the dialogical and often defensive character of Iran's routes to modernity. Amanat highlights the heterogeneous groups and contending interests that shaped what he calls a 'Persianized version of modernity.' Balancing analysis of changes in political economy with the roles of public religion and the persistence of cultural traditions, this is a compelling and comprehensive conspectus of Iranian history with a magisterial command of detail."—Nile Green, University of California, Los Angeles

A conversation with Abbas Amanat:

Why did you write this book?
 
When teaching Iran’s history and culture, I realized that modern Iranian history is often treated as a purely twentieth-century phenomenon. This book is an attempt to understand Iran in a broader time frame—half a millennium. I show that not only the dictates of geography, economy, and culture but also the forces of modernity have exposed Iran to unusually complex experiences. I view Iran in a broader regional and global space and highlight its political and socioeconomic ties with the outside world as well as its cultural history. Iran is as much the story of dynasties, mullahs, and geopolitics as it is about poets and artists, women and gender, and the disempowered.
 
Should Iran's history inform our foreign policy?
 
Books like mine humanize Iranian society for Western readers and show the importance of engaging with Iranian people beyond the misconceptions that have darkened political horizons for the past thirty years. Reading about Iran’s tortuous path to modernity may persuade audiences to appreciate geopolitical pressures, disillusionments, and forces of oppression that have contributed to a culture of defiance in today’s Iran.
 
How do your conclusions compare with Iranians' own understanding of their history?
 
I hope this book offers an alternative reading to the black-and-white narratives of the past, the stories of heroes versus villains, and the undue glorification or damnation of personalities, events, beliefs, and nations. We live in an age when more nuanced and complex readings of history are desirable.