Introduction
Introduction
Democracy and Culture
This introductory chapter presents the rationale of the book. This book offers a sociological perspective on the history of the struggle to achieve modernity and democracy in contemporary Iran. It argues that Islam, as a religion, cultural practice, and democracy—and as a nonviolent way to organize political order—is both socially rooted and can be best understood and reconciled within a sociological and institutionally grounded perspective. This contrasts with the dominant current of thought among many prominent Iranian intellectuals, a discourse which argues that “Islamic culture” rests on an archaic set of fixed ideas and beliefs inherently hostile to democratization in Iran. The thinkers of this school argue that a radical philosophical critique of the history of ideas is called for as a fundamental prerequisite both to resolve the present political crisis and ensure the future well-being of the country.
Keywords: modernity, democracy, Iran, Islam, political order, Islamic culture, political crisis
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