Reading Legitimation Crisis in Tehran – Iran and the Future of Liberalism: 27 (Paradigm) - Softcover

Postel, Danny

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0976147572 ISBN 13: 9780976147572

Publisher: University of Chicago Press, 2007

Synopsis

The Iran depicted in the headlines is a rogue state ruled by ever-more-defiant Islamic fundamentalists. Yet inside the borders, an unheralded transformation of a wholly different political bent is occurring. A liberal renaissance, as one Iranian thinker terms it, is emerging in Iran, and in this pamphlet, Danny Postel charts the contours of the intellectual upheaval.
"Reading "Legitimation Crisis" in Tehran" examines the conflicted positions of the Left toward Iran since 1979, and, in particular, critically reconsiders Foucault s connection to the Iranian Revolution. Postel explores the various elements of the subtle liberal revolution and proposes a host of potential implications of this transformation for Western liberalism.He examines the appeal of Jurgen Habermas, Hannah Arendt, and Isaiah Berlin among Iranian intellectuals and ponders how their ideas appear back to us when refracted through a Persian prism. Postel closes with a thought-provoking conversation with eminent Iranian philosopher Ramin Jahanbegloo.
A provocative and incisive polemic highly relevant to our times, "Reading "Legitimation Crisis" in Tehran" will be of interest to anyone who wants to get beyond alarmist rhetoric and truly understand contemporary Iran.
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About this title

Review

"In "Reading ''Legitimation Crisis'' in Tehran," Postel takes the US left to task for neglecting this important social movment and suggest that the new Iranian democratic discourse is an original form of ''liberal Third Worldism'' that is distinct from neoliberalism and deserving of our support." -- Janet Afary, Kevin Anderson "The Nation" (07/16/2007)

"In Reading ''Legitimation Crisis'' in Tehran, Postel takes the US left to task for neglecting this important social movment and suggest that the new Iranian democratic discourse is an original form of ''liberal Third Worldism'' that is distinct from neoliberalism and deserving of our support." -- Janet Afary, Kevin Anderson "The Nation" (07/16/2007)

"Danny Postel''s Reading ''Legitimation Crisis'' in Tehran is particularly thought-provoking. It brings to light a new interpretation of contemporary Iranian politics that offers an alternative to neoconservative democracy promotion. The book also offers a self-critical look at the politics of the Left, holding liberals responsible for their lack of solidariy with Iranian democrats in their struggle against authoritarianism. . . . Reading ''Legitimation Crisis'' in Tehran forces us to ask a crucial question: What is the best way to promote democracy in Iran?" -- Babak Rahimi "Middle East Policy" (09/01/2007)

"In a perfect world, someone with the power to stop the imminent pre-emptive military strike against Iran would find the time to pick up a little pamphlet published the Prickly Paradigm Press and spend a few hours considering the intellectual stakes in the Great Satan''s latest confrontation with the Axis of Evil. . . . Reading ''Legitimation Crisis'' in Tehran by Danny Postel offers a very different view of the ''fundamentalist Iran'' so casually discussed in Washington and it underscores the dangerous simplifications which are becoming a habitual liability of the Bush administration."--Stabroek News (Guyana)

"The importance of Postel''s book reaches far beyond a mere exercise in intellectual history. The temptation is either to castigate Iran as a state run by dangerous fundamentalist fanatics, or to celebrate it as a beacon of anti-imperialist resistance. Both approaches miss the complexity of intellectual and political life in Iran where, in a unique short-circuit, political battles reverberate in the terms of modern Western philosophy: some traditionalist clerics refer to Heidegger, liberals to Habermas, feminists to Arendt, some young ''nihilists'' to deconstruction. . . . The specter of an exotic country is thus dispelled, and we can recognize in Iran our own battles, fought more passionately than in our own countries. This is Postel''s great lesson: Iran''s story is our own."--Slavoj Zižek --Slavoj Zizek (06/18/2006)

"There''s much more to this slim pamphlet, including a fascinating interview with Iranian philosopher Ramin Jahanbegloo . . . and a close psychological reading of Michel Foucault''s illiberal 1978-79 articles in support of the Iranian Revolution. I read the pamphlet every morning before work last week, on the subway; couldn''t put it down! Great stocking stuffer. . . ."--;i>Boston Globe" --Joshua Glenn"Boston Globe" (12/14/2006)

"In "Reading ''Legitimation Crisis'' in Tehran", Postel takes the US left to task for neglecting this important social movment and suggest that the new Iranian democratic discourse is an original form of ''liberal Third Worldism'' that is distinct from neoliberalism and deserving of our support."--"The Nation""" "" --Janet Afary, Kevin Anderson"The Nation" (07/16/2007)

"Danny Postel''s "Reading ''Legitimation Crisis'' in Tehran" is particularly thought-provoking. It brings to light a new interpretation of contemporary Iranian politics that offers an alternative to neoconservative democracy promotion. The book also offers a self-critical look at the politics of the Left, holding liberals responsible for their lack of solidariy with Iranian democrats in their struggle against authoritarianism. . . . "Reading ''Legitimation Crisis''""in Tehran" forces us to ask a crucial question: What is the best way to promote democracy in Iran?"--"Middle East Policy" --Babak Rahimi"Middle East Policy" (09/01/2007)

"Short and lively . . . a return to the 18th-century form of argumentative prose."--"Time Out Chicago"
--Jonathan Messinger"Time Out Chicago" (08/16/2007)

"In "Reading 'Legitimation Crisis' in Tehran", Postel takes the US left to task for neglecting this important social movment and suggest that the new Iranian democratic discourse is an original form of 'liberal Third Worldism' that is distinct from neoliberalism and deserving of our support."--"The Nation""" "" --Janet Afary, Kevin Anderson"The Nation" (07/16/2007)

About the Author

Danny Postel is senior editor of the London-based magazine "openDemocracy "and contributing editor to "Daedalus," the journal of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is also a member of the Committee for Academic and Intellectual Freedom of the International Society for Iranian Studies."

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0976147572
• ISBN 13: 9780976147572
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 80