Islamic Secularism and the Question of Freedom in Iran

Adib-Moghaddam, Arshin

Abstract

My research deals with the question of ‘freedom’ in Iran and the appropriation of ‘liberal’ ideas by influential intellectuals with an Islamic persuasion. At the same time, I am conceptualising the term ‘Islamic secularism’ with a particular emphasis on the spectre of democracy in Iran. I argue that Iranian thinkers, whose philosophical nodal point continues to be a modernistic interpretation of Islam (or Islamism), have struggled to formulate a theory that would transcend the confines of the revolution and satisfy the demands for pluralism and liberty put forward during several protests in Iran and, of course, during the 2011 Arab revolts.

Citation

Adib-Moghaddam, A. Islamic Secularism and the Question of Freedom in Iran. Middle East Critique, 25(1), 71-82. https://doi.org/10.1080/19436149.2015.1101873

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Online Publication Date: Nov 4, 2015
• Deposit Date: Sep 2, 2016
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 5, 2115
• Journal: Middle East Critique
• Print ISSN: 1943-6149
• Electronic ISSN: 1943-6157
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 25
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 71-82
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/19436149.2015.1101873
• Keywords: Democracy, Iran, Islam, Islamic philosophy, Mohsen Kadivar, liberalism, political theory, secularism, Abdolkarim Soroush