The Two Sovereignties and the Legitimacy Crisis in Iran

Jahanbegloo, Ramin

doi:10.1111/j.1467-8675.2009.00581.x

Cited by 20 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 1 publication

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The 1979 revolution, however, was not merely concerning economy; it was heralded, and its virtues often judged, by its normative call. It was an unprecedented attempt to fuse divine and popular sovereignties (Ghobadzadeh and Rahim ; Jahanbegloo ). Since its inception, the regime has labored to balance the ethos of “popular will,” drawing on civil society in the public sphere, with the theocratic principle of Vilayat‐e Faqih , the sanctified guardianship of the religious jurist (the supreme leader); and similarly on blending Iranian nationalism with the pan‐Islamic Umma .…”

Section: Iranian Nuclear Diversionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Ahmadinejad's tenure severely undermined the regime's moral balancing act, engendering “a crisis of legitimacy” as “Ahmadinejad and his group gave themselves the task of closing the chapter of popular sovereignty” (Jahanbegloo , 27, 28). Still, for many, Ahmadinejad's policies merely tore open the regime's mask, revealing—to both the Iranian public and the international community—its real character as a Weberian “sultanism,” with Khamenei at its center (Ganji ).…”

Section: Iranian Nuclear Diversionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To these four “usual suspects,” this article adds a fifth, complementary and contemporary motivation for Iranian nuclear policy, focusing on Ahmadinejad's tenure (2005‐13): the Iranian regime's deepening domestic legitimacy crisis (Ansari ; Chubin ; Ghobadzadeh and Rahim ; Jahanbegloo ; Morady ; Shahi ). While all nuclear motivations—the four “usual suspects” as well as the fifth proposed here—lack conclusive evidence, there is sufficient reason to suspect that the legitimation motive has become increasingly weighty in this causal complex.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Nuclear Diversion Theory and Legitimacy Crisis: The Case of Iran

Abulof

2013

Politics & Policy

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Can an insecure regime use nuclear diversion to address its eroding domestic legitimacy? This article argues that facing a domestic legitimacy crisis, a regime might opt to "rally round the nuclear flag" to survive. Theoretically, I argue that, compared with conventional diversion, nuclear diversion is less susceptible to structural restraints, has a unique symbolic value that could aid in coping with an acute legitimacy crisis, and spans a host of diversionary strategies as it ascends the escalation ladder, both before and after acquiring the bomb. The theory is examined empirically via Iranian nuclear policy. I argue that facing a deepening legitimacy crisis, the Iranian regime, throughout Ahmadinejad's tenure, has been increasingly drawing on nuclear diversion to boost public support and that, if the legitimacy crisis lingers, the regime may opt to further employ diversionary nuclear strategies, most of which require a viable "nuclear latency," rather than actual military nuclear capability.What are the causes and reasons for "going nuclear"? Among the myriad explanations, this article focuses on one: domestic legitimacy crisis. I explore this rarely analyzed motivation to go nuclear, suggesting that an insecure regime can use nuclear diversion to address its eroding domestic legitimacy. Nuclear diversion theory complements prevalent arguments regarding the drivers of nuclear proliferation, which accentuate economic incentives, deterrence and compellence, prestige and status, identity politics, parochial interests, and international norms (Brown et al.

show abstract

Section: Iranian Nuclear Diversionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Iranian Nuclear Diversionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Nuclear Diversion Theory and Legitimacy Crisis: The Case of Iran

Abulof

2013

Politics & Policy

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…78–99) explains, not even the history revisionists of the Islamic Republic, who revised school textbooks after the 1979 Revolution, could divorce the sense of being Persian from the commitment to Islam. This dual perception of belonging to the ancient Persia and being a Muslim characterized the newly established Islamic Republic which, as Jahanbegloo points out, declared “the unity and the brotherhood of all Muslims in one Umma and yet [reinforced] Iranian nationalism” (Jahanbegloo, :24).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Double‐Thinking and Contradictory Arrangements in Iranian Law and Society

Banakar

2018

Digest Mid East Studies

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Although thinking double thoughts and living dual lives are not specifically Iranian traits, Iranians have, nevertheless, become more susceptible to them for historical reasons, which may be traced back to when Persians became Muslims. The gradual normalization of double‐thinking over the centuries has given rise to social and political patterns of behavior and institutional arrangements which oscillate between opposing regimes of truths and different sets of ethical concerns, often without merging them into a new process. Once double‐thinking is normalized at the level of society, it helps people to cope with the cognitive dissonance they experience in circumstances where it is difficult to change attitude and behavior. It also affects the organization of society by making contradictory arrangements appear normal. It promotes reflexive thinking and subversive action as much as it facilitates misrecognition of sociopolitical suppression and legitimization of symbolic violence. This state of affairs generates a form of modernity which appears, at least on the surface, to be comfortable with contradictory social arrangements, while deep down it remains ill at ease with its inner contradictions.

show abstract

Introduction

Gohardani¹,

Tizro²

2019

The Political Economy of Iran

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The Two Sovereignties and the Legitimacy Crisis in Iran

Cited by 20 publications

References 1 publication

Nuclear Diversion Theory and Legitimacy Crisis: The Case of Iran

Nuclear Diversion Theory and Legitimacy Crisis: The Case of Iran

Double‐Thinking and Contradictory Arrangements in Iranian Law and Society

Introduction

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About