نشریه مطالعات ملی
سال هفتم شماره 3 (پیاپی 27، پاییز 1385)

Any discussion about Iranian Identity takes us to field such as political thought. If we take identitiy as process of "Meaning construction and self-consciousness", a process that roots in Iranian cultural characteristic, requires discussion about myth and epic,as two foundations of Iranian Identity. This essay deals with basic question: Why and how myth and epic, took part in development of Iranian Identity? The hypothesis that has been reviewed in this essay, is that, myth and epic as the first and oldest origin of Iranian thinking concern with political and social function with this idea in their structure that ideal political order requires a conformity between the order of society And order of univers as a whole. Shared effect of these two Iranian heritage, has been protecting unity and integration of Iranian people.

From many years ago up to now, the strong presence of the Iranian identification elements in the culture of many Eastern peoples, has associated meaning of the Iranian world besides the name of Iran. It contained the wide geography of the world that started from Balkan in Europe from one side and continued to Eastern borders of China in Asia, and from another side it surrounded Transoxania to the centre of India and Mesopotamia. After Islamic Revolution of Iran in 1978/1357 A.D. and then the independence of the five Republics in Transoxania in 1991/1370 A.D. the attention of Persian speaking poets and researches of the two areas has increased to each other after the seventy years of the Soviet colonization in Transoxania more than before. In this article, the Iranian world and its writings in Transoxania in 20th century have been analyzed and regulated in three parts according to literary heritage of Mehdi Akhavan Sales (1928-1990) and Dr. Shafei Kadkani (1939), and these two Iranian contemporary poets have reflected the events of this area in their poems:

In the second period of Iranian Constitutional revolution, that was started with the conquest of Tehran at 1909 and ended with the ultimatum of Russia at 1912, Iran witnessed a period of important political, social and cultural changes during her contemporary history. In this period, particularly from the viewpoint of intellectual trend, various and interesting intellectual currents has formed that each of those attempted to transfer their viewpoints on constitutionality to the Iranian society. Sheikh Hossein Yazdi was one of the important clerics that his theoretical position and situation on the constitutional discussions and his viewpoints on the relation between religion and constitution is not clear till now. This article deals with the above mentioned issues and Yazdi’s attitude towards them.

This article comes in three sections. The first deals with the question why the society of Iran is faced with the problem of law-breaking, while the second attempts to go through the studies on the question of law and obedience of law. We argue that the analyses related to this area are not efficient. Therefore, the last part identifies another pattern for the study of law-breaking in Iran through presenting a series of concepts such as indiscipline society and surveillance and punishment institutions.

Cultural diversity is an ancient reality of human societies, but multiculturalism as an ideology, discourse and policy is a new issue, started since 1970 first in North America, Australia and then spread to Western Europe. This school of thought and pattern for policy-making, although has arisen lately in political and cultural studies, because of its close relationship with different issues such as; globalization, citizenship, minorities, public policy, new social movements, nation-building and in the most important one the identity, social solidarity and national integration appeared as a critical and central topic, attracted attention of thinkers and policy makers. Multiculturalism which emphasized on the "recognition of difference" and "respect for cultural diversity" in public sphere, as a legitimate and desirable element of societies, has a close relationship with social solidarity and national unity. This article examines this relation critically, so it begins with conceptual study of multiculturalism, and influential elements concerning its expansion, and then examines the relation between multiculturalism and national unity and social solidarity. Although the author accepts same of positive consequences of multiculturalism in one hand, and accepts the multi dimensional aspect of criticisms in other hand, but only considers the negative impacts of multiculturalism on national solidarity.

What is postmodernism? Can we discuses about new feature of political identity in postmodern condition? Is postmodern thought challenge the modern paradigms of identity? How the carrier of postmodern thought with identity dilemma in late modernity period? Can we imagine positive and constructive vein in postmodern movement? Postmodernism is a trend that has two faces. In the face, postmodernism see as a negative and destructive phenomenon that disrupts current established identities; such as nationalism, collective identity or transnational one. But in a positive and affirmative view, postmodernism is a trend that creates a new framework of political identity. In this outlook assert that postmodenism in a final analysis is a constructive scheme. In this article the author tries to describe characteristics of political identity of postmodernism from an affirmative outlook.

This article is an attempt to elaborate on only one aspect of democratization n undeveloped nations of the south. Considering the fact that due to emergence of peocesses of globalization, the authoritarian regimes have come under pressures, particularly by the U.S., theoretical speculation in this respect is a very timely. The argument in this article flows in fallowing phrase: Not with standing some parties successes this prescriptive pattern has been mainly frustrated. In practical terms, this attempt has conduced to a political life, roughly defined by pseudodemocracy.