Khatami's Iran: The Islamic Republic and the Turbulent Path to Reform

To understand contemporary Iran's notoriously complex politics, it is essential first to grasp the monumental changes initiated by Mohammad Khatami. This previously little-known cleric stormed to victory in Iran's 1997 presidential elections with nearly 70% of the vote, encouraging Iran's reform movement to flourish during his eight-year tenure as president. Ghoncheh Tazmini's book offers a thought-provoking, astutely close-up yet systematic analysis of Khatami the man and the reform movement that supported him. She provides us with the first insight into Khatami and his politics, unravelling from the inside the dramatic emergence and consequences of Iran's vibrant reform movement. Khatami's reforms ushered in an era of transformation and set the country on the path to greater religious tolerance, increased socio-political liberties, integration into the world economy and rapprochement with the international community. Tazmini's account of Iran's charismatic and ambitious President-Reformer is authoritative and provocative, portraying Khatami as a leader who displayed a combination of exceptional resilience and periods of cautious hesitancy in the face of dilemmas and vulnerabilities associated with his decision to become the first Iranian figure to implement change in the Islamic Republic of Iran. She describes how despite the institutional constraints associated with Iran's power structure and powerful conservative opposition, the reform movement managed to successfully set in motion a pluralistic momentum in Iran. Balanced and analytical, this book provides a comprehensive and finely detailed introduction to the subtleties of contemporary Iran's complex political culture. At the same time it is an important reference point for a critical period of Iran's post-revolutionary trajectory, especially given the controversial post-Khatami developments in the country following the election of President Ahmadinejad.

Table of Contents:
Table of Contents 1 Modernity, Modernisation and Reform Western narratives of modernity Iran's intellectual encounter with modernity Intellectual roots of Khatami's reform movement 2 The Man Behind the Movement The making of a leader Childhood, education, career Not an Iranian Gorbachev 3 The Ideas Behind Reform Historical antecedents Towards an Iranian 'Third Way' Khatami's political philosophy 4 The Khatami Way The move behind the movement The 'moment': 23 May 1997 5 From Slogan to Practice Institutionalising change The dynamics of social change 6 Unveiling Iran's Iron Curtain Dialogue among civilisations New political thinking 7 Reform meets reaction Power struggle Khatami: reformist or conformist? 8 Khatami's Revolution and Beyond Khatami's conceptual revolution Significance of the reform movement: the Man and the Movement Unfinished Revolution The Future of the Reform Movement in Iran Conclusion

About the Author :
Ghoncheh Tazmini recently completed her term as Visiting Fellow at the Middle East Centre at the London School of Economics, UK. Educated at the University of British Columbia, the LSE and the University of Kent, she holds a PhD in international relations. She is the author of Khatami's Iran (2007, 2009), and Revolution and Reform in Russia and Iran (2012).