Iran Between Two Revolutions

I read this book a few years ago and thus far, I can say with certainty that this is the best work on modern Iran that I've read. Prof. Abrahamian gives a detailed account of Iran from the Constitutional Revolution of 1906 to the fall of the Shah in Feb. 1979. Based on what I can remember, he devoted much time to the rule of the last Shah, with chapters devoted to the rise and fall of Mossadegh, the radical opposition to the Shah after the 1953 coup d'etat, to the Tudeh Party and to the country's development until the Islamic Revolution of 1979. After reading this book, I came away with a very good understanding of pre-revolutionary Iran and with detailed information about 20th century Iran, especially in the Pahlavi era. Prof. Abrahamian puts forth the argument that the Shah's downfall was due to Iran's uneven development during the nearly 26 years of Mohammad Reza Shah's absolute rule. That period was characterized by rapid industrialization and the creation of a large well-educated class which was expected to support the regime. The problem was that while the society and economy was advancing rapidly (in the direction of the democracies of Europe), politically Iran remained a crude authoritarian state which denied real political power to the educated secular class. As a result, they turned against the regime. This is what Prof. Abrahamian means when he talks of "uneven development." It is a powerful thesis, but I think it underestimates the role of SAVAK (the Shah's brutal secret police agency) in the suppression of both peaceful and violent dissent and thus alienating both the poverty-stricken working class and the educated secular class. This was probably the biggest reason why the 1978-79 uprising succeeded in the way it did. But in conclusion, I would highly recommend Prof. Abrahamian's book to anyone interested in modern Iran.

Abrahamian's Iran Between Two Revolution is an extraordinary study, based on nearly 18 years of research and thinking about Iranian social groups and their political organizations. It is indeed a must read for any social scientist focusing on Iranian history.