Reflections on the Contemporary State and Society in Iran A Theoretical Endeavor to Evaluate Formation of the Nation-State, and to Offer an Alternative Framework

The state in contemporary Iran is a relatively neglected subject, especially by sociologists. One of the few studies conducted on this matter is an art icle by Hamid Reza Jalaeipour t it led: A Theoret ical At tempt for Evaluation formation of the Nation-State in Contemporary Iran. He, in that article, tries to presents an analysis regarding the situation of the nation-state in contemporary Iran. Since participation of the academic community on this mat ter can shed light on certain aspects of the nature of the state in the contemporary Iranian history, what was in my mind in writing the present article was twofoldan: an attempt to present a critique of Jalaeipour's paper, and to open the way in this regard. Reflecting on the afore-said article leads one to see that the writer has confused the category of nation-state with that of the transition to democracy (and its ups and downs). Such a confusion has led him to offer a definition for the nation-state which is neither consistent with those of the thinkers nor with the historical facts. Aside from that, on the subject of the nat ion-state, he uses theories of two thinkers which are essentially different from one another. Due to the conceptual confusion the writer's analysis regarding the formation process and the situation of the nation-state in Iran is not sound. The present article attempts to provide an alternative framework on the subject through a critical interpretation of the said article.