Iranian Revolutions

Chapter 18 of Gelvin’s book The Modern Middle East: A History discusses the resistance and revolutions that emerged in the Middle East during the contemporary era. He, also, discusses the impacts these revolutions have had in the Middle East. Gelvin focus is on the Iranian Revolution of 1978-1789, and the subsequent effects of the revolution on the Middle East. This paper will discuss the how the revolutions in the Middle East reshaped it. This paper will look mainly at the Iranian Revolution and the impact of it on government and Islamist groups emerging.

To start with, Gelvin points out two reasons for the emergence of social or political movements in the Middle East after they gained independence. The reasons he lists are nativism and

demand for rights to be restored or improved upon. Nativism believe that to revive a community is to revert back to its defining traditions. The second reason is straightforward. This reason is to fight for their rights, either economic or social for individuals or groups. The majority of the time, the revolutions that emerge combine both of these reasons. The Iranian Revolutions is an example movement that combines nativism with demand for rights.
The Iranian Revolution took place from 1978 to 1979, and was a resistance against the shah and his policies.

The shah used Iran’s wealth to “engage in social engineering, consolidate his power, and expand the state’s intrusion into the lives of its citizenry.” The policies the shah was implementing alienated many of the citizens he ruled. This upset many in the country, and the result was the Iranian Revolution. The people than led a war against the state. In the end, the Revolution was successful and the government overthrown. This revolution had many impacts on the Middle East, specifically the emergence of a new government and Islamist

group.
First, a result of the Iranian Revolution was the emergence of a new government.

This new government was based off Avatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ideas. He proposed that Iran should establish a theocracy, which would be run by the ulama. Khomeini’s idea for government were outlined in the Iran Constitution, adopted by 1979. The fundamental idea of this government was that all laws in the Islamic republic much be based on the Islamic principle. The top of this government was the supreme ruler. This ruler had to be just and qualified to rule on matter that dealt with Islamic law. Under this new government, Khomeini was the first supreme ruler. This new government was one way in which the revolutions reshaped Iran during this time period. It reshaped Iran because it completely changed the power structure in the area and led to changes in the lives of Iranian citizens. Although this government was a way to purify the Iranian society, many believe that this model of government is borrowed from the West. Gelvin then argues that this meant that they did not Islamize the nation, instead they nationalized the religion. His argument is that the religion becomes a characteristic of the state, instead of the nation taking on Islamic characteristics.

Another impact of revolutions on Middle Easter societies is the emergence of many Islamic groups. Although they gained more popularity during this time period, all of the groups were not new groups in the region. An example of this is

the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, this was founded in 1928. It was during the 1980’s and the 1990’s that the number of these groups swelled. Gelvin discusses many reasons for this growth in Islamic groups.
In conclusion, this paper discussed how revolutions impacted and reshaped the Middle East during the 1980’s and 1990’s (the contemporary era). Gelvin focused on the Iranian Revolution, and the subsequent impacts on Middle Eastern Society. One of the impacts discussed was the new government that was put into place after the revolution. This government was a theology, so it based of Islamic principles. The other impact that reshaped the Middle East was the emergence of old and new Islamic groups. These are the ways in which the Middle East was reshaped after the Iranian Revolution.