The Iranian Revolution

Introduction

The Iranian Revolution of 1979 was one of the most significant and ambivalent events in the history of XX century. The abdication of Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi and the establishment of Islamic Republic were declared as the main results of this political phenomenon. Despite many ideological controversies, the radical Shi’a Islamist clergy and more moderate opposition parties shared the common anti-imperialist goals within the state. On the eve of revolution, they have gained the massive popular support and intended to create the unique political system. However, their unity was proved to have a temporary character due to autocratic and radical views of the former. The Oxford Dictionary defines revolution as a forcible overthrow

However, the political regime resulted after revolution failed to fulfil the public demands for democracy and social justice and therefore created authoritarian system, bereft of citizenry rights. In terms of foreign affairs, the revolution proved to be a misfortune as it isolated Iran from western world and was given the label of “rogue state”. Furthermore, the failure to export revolutionary ideas in the region and the long-term involvement in the war with Iraq only confirm this argument. The object of this essay is to explain the success and failure of Iranian revolution and to demonstrate how the success of revolution transformed to the aggressive coercion. To address the question, the first section will analyze the economic development of Iran. Next section will mainly focus on the attempts of regime to create the new political order with sophisticated hybrid system within the state by legitimizing the new constitution. In the third section attention will be drawn to Iran’s foreign affairs, its advantages and drawbacks. Lastly, the paper concludes that there is no single answer to the question of success and effectiveness of Iranian

Section 2 – Social and political transformations in Iran

• It can be argued that the roots of Islamic revolution lay in the White revolution during the Shah period. Opposition of traditional society was the ruling force for revolts

• The integrative social and political movements that arise to meet these demands have often been a major contributing factor to the occurrence of revolutions. The collapse of the societal structure of domination in revolutions is caused by two sets of factors: the structure's internal weaknesses and vulnerabilities, and the concerted action of the social groups and individuals opposing it. Such groups and individuals may have political motives for opposing the regime, usually arising in the context of the power struggle set in motion by the centralization of the state.

• New constitution, its effectiveness and critics. Constitution of the Islamic Republic contains articles calling for protection of basic human rights and reflects the aspiration for a more equitable political system. These articles are demonstrating the social-democratic and liberal efforts in cosntitution.

• Legal status of women was significantly