Social Movements in Iran
Despite the growing significance of social movements worldwide, scholarship on the subject remains largely Western in nature, with studies written primarily by Western scholars and based on the experiences of Western cultures and societies. This book makes an important contribution to the study of social movements in non-Western societies by examining their development in Iran. With a particular focus on the recent environmental movement, the author sheds new light on the implications and significance of these movements.
Drawing on in-depth original research, the case study of the environmental movement is integrated into a historical and comparative analysis. Implementing the new social movement theory of Touraine and Melucci in the Iranian context, the author shows that although the reform movement of Iran is unique, in some aspects it is a continuation of the past social movements. She places emphasis on the role of women in recent Iranian social movements, exploring the significance of social movements in civil society and in instigating social change.
Using the case of Iran to offer a critical framework for studying social change and transformation of non-European countries, this book fills an important gap in the existing literature on the topic. As such, it will be of great interest to scholars and students of sociology, political science and Middle Eastern studies.
Simin Fadaee is Assistant Professor for the sociology of Asia and Africa at Humboldt University Berlin. Her research interests lie in the areas of social movements, social inequality, globalization and social structure.
Iranian Studies
Edited by:
Homa Katouzian, University of Oxford and Mohamad Tavakoli, University of
Toronto.
Since 1967 the International Society for Iranian Studies (ISIS) has been a leading learned society for the advancement of new approaches in the study of Iranian society, history, culture, and literature. The new ISIS Iranian Studies series published by Routledge will provide a venue for the publication of original and innovative scholarly works in all areas of Iranian and Persianate Studies.
1. Journalism in Iran
From mission to profession
Hossein Shahidi
2. Sadeq Hedayat
His work and his wondrous
world
Homa Katouzian
3. Iran in the 21st Century
Politics, economics and
confrontation
Homa Katouzian and
Hossein Shahidi
4. Media, Culture and Society in Iran
Living with globalization and
the Islamic State
Mehdi Semati
5. Modern Persian Literature in
Afghanistan
Anomalous visions of history
and form
Wali Ahmadi
6. The Politics of Iranian Cinema
Film and society in the
Islamic Republic
Saeed Zeydabadi-Nejad
7. Continuity in Iranian Identity
Resilience of a cultural heritage
Fereshteh Davaran
8. New Perspectives on Safavid Iran
Empire and society
Edited by Colin P. Mitchell
9. Islamic Tolerance
Amir Khusraw and pluralism
Alyssa Gabbay
10. City and Knowledge in
Twentieth Century Iran
Shiraz, history and poetry
Setrag Manoukian
11. Domestic Violence in Iran
Women, marriage and Islam
Zahra Tizro
12. Gnostic Apocalypse and Islam
The Quran, Tafsir and
Messianism
Todd Lawson
13. Social Movements in Iran
Environmentalism and civil
society
Simin Fadaee
Social Movements in Iran
Environmentalism and civil society
Simin Fadaee
First published 2012
by Routledge
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Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
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Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa
business
2012 Simin Fadaee
The right of Simin Fadaee to be identified as author of this work
has been asserted by him/her in accordance with sections 77 and 78
of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British
Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Fadaee, Simin.
Social movements in Iran : environmentalism and civil society /
Simin Fadaee.
p. cm. (Iranian studies)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. EnvironmentalismIran. 2. Social movementsIran. I. Title.
GE199.I7F33 2012
303.48'40955dc23
2011036410
ISBN 978-0-415-69357-8 (hbk)
ISBN 978-0-203-12690-5 (ebk)
Illustrations
Figures
Tables
Preface
Social movements have changed, and more than ever continue to change, the landscape of our globalizing world in different ways. However, shortage of academic analysis on the dynamics of social movements and change in general, and in non-Western contexts in particular, has made the systematic analysis of these complex collective actions complicated, and in some cases impossible. By applying new social movement theory to the Iranian context, unlike most other publications on Iran that ignore the embodied Euro-centrism of sociological theory, this book offers a critical framework for better understanding social change and transformation in the non-Western context. Moreover, by offering an original in-depth study of Iranian environmentalism, it provides readers with an insight into one of the most novel and important, but neglected, aspects of contemporary Iranian civil society and social movements. Therefore, the book is essentially an introduction to a book that might be written in futuresociology of social movements in Iran.
The book is intended for students of social movements, and Iranian and Middle Eastern studies. However, readers unfamiliar with social science and the Middle East should also find the book understandable and not too complicated. Moreover, it could be of use to social activists and political scientists. In general, anyone with a serious interest in Iran and sociology could find some interesting information in the following pages.
