The relationship between subject and structure and rethinking in contemporary Iran identity discourses: From the Constitutional Revolution (Mashrouteh) to the Islamic Republic

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Authors

1 PhD Student in Political Science, Faculty of Law, Theology and Political Science, Research Sciences Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.

2 Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Faculty of Law, Theology and Political Science, Research Sciences Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. tavasoli@gmail.com

3 Associate Professor of Political Science, Faculty of Law and Political Science, University of Tehran

10.30465/cps.2021.36662.2805

Abstract

Sense of belonging and identity in the context of "national identity" is a reflection of the transformations that took place in the modern era. Identity is understood as the influence of relationships between us and others. Identity needs difference to explain and establish its behavioral patterns, and in the continuation of each identity discourse, it transforms differences into an "other" or "outsider" in order to defend its scope and boundaries. In Iran, the Constitutional Revolution can be considered the starting point for the emergence of modern identity discourses in the social and political spheres. Therefore, the application of the concept of identity emerges in this period and its effects can be seen in all political and social events that took place in Iran. The main question of the present paper is: What has been the relationship between the subject and the discourse structures in the identity discourse of contemporary Iran? The hypothesis is that the subject and the identity are meaningful under the influence of the structure power from the Constitution to the Islamic Republic, so that in each period we see the subject weakening and disappearing, while over the last two decades, the role of the structure has gradually it become less and less. Importantly, in this period, subjects have a more active and serious role as carriers of identity. The innovative thesis of the present article is that in the last two decades, for the first time in the history of contemporary Iran, we have witnessed a decrease in the role of structures and strength of the role of the "personal subject" (in Touraine‎'s words). The method of data collection in the present study is documentation and data collection tool is taking notes from original sources.

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References

 
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