FYI 100
Rethinking Iran:  Images and Realities

Eshragh Motahar/Winter 2024

 This course operates under two fundamental principles:  transparency and accountability.  Every effort will be made to adhere to the terms of this syllabus.  However, changes and adaptations might have to be made because of the COVID-19 pandemic (force majeure).  I will give you written notice of those changes.

OFFICE INFORMATION

A.  COURSE

Recent protests in Iran and Southwest Asia have, once again, placed Iran under the international spotlight. How do we understand these events? The relationship between the U.S. and countries in the Middle East [Southwest Asia] and North Africa has been turbulent for several decades.  Why?  We will argue that one important factor has been the CIA-sponsored coup that overthrew the democratically-elected government of Iran in 1953.  We will study this event, and the subsequent 25 years of repression and de-democratization in Iran under US auspices.  We will argue that the 1979 revolution in Iran and its major ramifications throughout the Middle East and North Africa can be traced to 1953.

In this course, we will study the economic, political, cultural, historical, and other factors that have shaped today’s Iran. We will also study the 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran, the U.S., Russia, China, the U.K., France and Germany.  We will examine the subsequent tearing up of that agreement by President Trump, and resulting developments in Iran and the rest of Middle East [Southwest Asia] and North Africa.  The goal is to enable students to contextualize, and thus better understand, current issues such as the role of petroleum and nuclear energy in Iran’s political economy and in its relationship with the rest of the world, the role of Islam in Iran, the position of women in society, and related issues. This contextualization will also take into account the shifting dynamics of economic and political power away from the “West” to Asia.  In this journey, students will develop an appreciation of Iran as a highly complex, multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-religious, modern, vibrant society with an ancient history and a rich cultural heritage.

This is a research-oriented course.  As such, in addition to the above, by the end of this course you should be able to do the following tasks well:

B.  BOOKS

REQUIRED:

1.  Benjamin, Medea, Inside Iran:  the Real History and Politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran, OR Books, 2018.

2.  Abrahamian, Ervand, Oil Crisis in Iran: From Nationalism to Coup d'Etat, Cambridge University Press, 2021.

3.  Porter, Gareth and Kiriakou, John, The CIA Insider's Guide to the Iran Crisis:  From the CIA Coup to the Brink of War, Skyhorse Publishing, 2020.


RECOMMENDED:

1.  Adelkhah, Fariba, Being Modern in Iran, Columbia University Press, 2000.

2.  Bennis, Phyllis, Understanding the US-Iran Crisis:  A Primer, Olive Branch Press, 2009.

3.  Dabashi, Hamid, Iran:  A People Interrupted, The New Press, 2008.

4.  Dabashi, Hamid, Iran Without Borders:  Towards a Critique of the Postcolonial Nation, Verso Books, 2016.

5.  Dabashi, Hamid, The Rebirth of a Nation, Palgrave/McMillan, 2017.

6. Hashemi, Nader and Postel, Danny (eds.), The People Reloaded:  The Green Movement and the Struggle for Iran's Future.  Melville House, 2010.

7.  Leverett, Flynt and Mann Leverett, Hillary, Going to Tehran, Picador 2013.

8.  Porter, Gareth, Manufactured Crisis:  The Untold Story of the Iran Nuclear Scare, Just World Books, 2014.

9.  Rad, Assal, The State of Resistance:  Politics, Culture, and Identity in Modern Iran, Cambridge University Press, 2022.

10.  Saikal, Amin, Iran Rising:  The Survival and Future of the Islamic Republic, Princeton University Press, 2019.

C.  COURSE WORK

1. The purpose of the lectures is to provide an overall view of the various issues under study; that is, provide breadth.  Therefore, lectures are not substitutes for reading the assigned material. 

2.  Additional material (in the form of articles, book chapters, etc.) will be assigned as we progress through the course.  This material will be regarded as an integral part of the course.

3.  I will give you specific guidance regarding reading assignments as we move through the term.

D.  TERM PROJECTS, AND CLASS POLICY

1.  There will be various projects/activities, as follows (due dates indicated in the middle column):

  -Short Paper  Thursday, 2/8, by the beginning of class        

15% of course grade
  -Term Paper proposal      Tuesday, 2/20, by the beginning of class 10% of course grade
  -Presentation During 2/27-3/12 period 25% of course grade
  -Term Paper (final copy)   Tuesday, 3/19, 4:00 PM 40% of course grade
  -Attendance/Participation      10% of course grade

2.  For guidelines regarding the above projects/activities see the relevant sections of the course's website.  All submissions must be in pdf format, Times New Roman 12-point font, double-spaced, paginated, one-inch margins all around.  There is a late-submission penalty of one point per hour.

3.  Attendance/Participation.  It is your responsibility to regularly attend class, and to participate in class discussions.  All classes are equally important.  I will not take attendance beyond the second class.  However, I will call on you to participate in class discussions.  If you are absent when you are called, this fact will be noted.

4.  Time management.  Time management is an integral part of your education.  Therefore, make sure to plan in a way to tackle all the projects in a timely manner.  

5.  Accommodative Arrangements.  Any student with a documented disability needing academic adjustments or accommodations is required to notify me, and to make the necessary arrangements with me via e-mail, by no later than 5:00 PM on January 16th, 2024.  Requests made after this date will not be honored (unless a case is made as to why the deadline was not met).  All discussions will remain confidential.

6.  Since adequate ways of assessing students' performance are already instituted, no additional work of any kind will be accepted as a means of improving grades.

7.  The dates of various projects/activities are announced on the first day of classes so that you can plan accordingly. There will be no changes in these dates unless you notify me by Tuesday, January 16th, that you have concerns with these dates.  If because of an extreme emergency you are unable to do any project/activity on time, you must (a) inform the Dean of Students and me ahead of time (or, in case of incapacity, have someone else contact), and (b) contact me subsequently so that, conditional on certification of the nature of emergency by the Dean of Students, arrangements can be made for a make-up date/late submission.  If the above procedures are not followed, your grade on that project/activity will be zero.  Please note that it is YOUR responsibility, NOT the professor’s, to make ALL the necessary arrangements.

8.  Professional Conduct.  You are required to adhere to the following professional code of conduct during classes.  It is in your best interest to drop this course if you are unable and/or unwilling to adhere to this code.  "In order for everyone to benefit from the educational process in an appropriate environment, adherence to professional conduct during class sessions is expected.  Eating, late arrival, leaving the classroom while it is in progress, conversation which interferes with session activity, and similar unprofessional conduct is not acceptable.  Such conduct will lead to point deductions (one point per occurrence) from your course grade."  The use of any electronic devices during the class sessions is not allowed unless you obtain prior permission from me. Unauthorized use of electronic devices will be subject to the same penalty points as above.  (Electronic devices include, but are not limited to:  cellphones, laptops, notebooks, iPads and iPad-like devices, Apple watches, etc.) 

Also, by taking this course you agree to the following:  "In order to safeguard the intellectual property of the professors, to safeguard the privacy of my professors and fellow students, and to foster an environment where the free exchange of all manner of views and ideas can be expressed without fear of dissemination outside of the classroom, I understand and agree to the following condition being imposed:  I will not in any manner, shape, form or description record the professor's lectures."

9.  Responsibility.  It is your responsibility to know course/class and college policies.  College rules and regulations governing issues such as academic honesty apply to all projects/activities in this course (see the relevant sections of the Student Handbook).  Cheating of any kind, including plagiarism, will result in serious penalties.   The College's new Honor Code is now in effect.  "Union College recognizes the need to create an environment of mutual trust as part of its educational mission. Responsible participation in an academic community requires respect for and acknowledgement of the thoughts and work of others, whether expressed in the present or in some distant time and place.  Matriculation at the College is taken to signify implicit agreement with the Academic Honor Code, available at honorcode.union.edu.  It is each student's responsibility to ensure that submitted work is his or her own and does not involve any form of academic misconduct. Students are expected to ask their course instructors for clarification regarding, but not limited to, collaboration, citations, and plagiarism.  Ignorance is not an excuse for breaching academic integrity.

Students are also required to affix the full Honor Code Affirmation, or the following shortened version, on each item of coursework submitted for grading:  ``I affirm that I have carried out my academic endeavors with full academic honesty.  [Signed, Jane Doe]"
 

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Last revised:  Thursday, January 04, 2024