Queer Sinister Things: The Hidden History of Iran - Softcover

Phillips, Tomas B

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0557509297 ISBN 13: 9780557509294

Publisher: Lulu.com, 2010

Synopsis

Phillips delivers a refreshingly honest and deeply compelling narrative of the history of modern Iran. With the feel of a great historical novel, Philips pierces through the ideological biases which have shaped our understanding of the Middle East, Cold War and the Iranian people. On every page we witness the complexity of governing a developing nation torn internally by the demands of "liberal" constitutional republicans, radical Socialists and radical Islamists and externally between the opposing powers of East and West. In Queer Sinister Things, Phillips by-passes the version of events dominant in today's academic and media circles, relying instead on the stories provided by those who documented developments in and about Iran as they happened. This living history, highly recommended for students, educators, journalists, policy makers and lovers of history everywhere, will forever change your understanding of this ancient land and its people.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

Toward the end of the 19th century the world was in the grip of monumental changes brought on by the philosophical movements which began more than 100 years earlier.

The French Enlightenment spawned various conflicting strains of Socialism while the Anglo-Scottish Enlightenment drifted towards what would ultimately become known simply as "liberalism". Whereas Socialism emphasized collectivism relegating man to a mere cog in the wheel of the larger social order, Liberalism celebrated man's independence from arbitrary authority. In one society after another, men and women asserted their right to make the decisions which affected their lives free from the control and/or tutelage of powerful elites both in and out of government.

In 1905 Persians took the stage and demanded liberal reforms on par with the West. Revolutionaries demanded and received Asia's first formal constitution and in-so-doing began a journey down a path that would take them from a backward relic of a once-powerful empire, to one of the most important nations of the East-West Conflict known as the Cold War.

Over the course of 74 short but turbulent years great men would rise and fall and the hopes and dreams of millions of their countrymen along with them.

This, is their story. This, is our story.

About this edition

• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0557509297
• ISBN 13: 9780557509294
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 457