The Curious Absence of Liberalism in Modern Iran

What accounts for the dearth of liberal political philosophies in contemporary debates about the course of democratic development in Iran? This paper argues that a lack of appreciation for the moral doctrine of pluralism (i.e. the notion, a la Isaiah Berlin, that human flourishing has neither a single source nor a singular end) among intellectuals and political actors alike has been a key yet oft-overlooked factor. Since the advent of constitutionalism in modern Iran, a combination of monistic political beliefs, absolutist systems of rule, and foreign interference has stifled the articulation of an indigenous liberal tradition. In this paper, I trace the swift rise and tragic fall of liberal political ideas through both an intellectual and historical history of sustained challenges to value pluralism.