The Contemporary History of Iran - Part 21: “Literary Roots of the Revolution”

“Literary Roots of the Revolution” - Part 21 of the Roqe Media series, The Contemporary History of Iran. What role did Iranian writers and intellectuals play in bringing on a revolution in Iran in 1979? How important was Persian literature in creating political sea change? And what were the lessons for those who fought political repression and censorship in the Pahlavi era and supported the overthrow of the Shah, when they faced an even worse plight under Khomeini? Distinguished writer and professor of Persian at the UCLA Department of Near Eastern Languages and Culture, Dr. Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak, author of the recent book, “ A Fire of Lilies: Perspectives on Literature and Politics in Modern Iran,” joins Jian Ghomeshi from Los Angeles to discuss the intellectual and creative class that supported the revolution of 1979 and their reasons for doing so, the heartbreak of those same intellectuals as the revolution was coopted by Islamic formalists who consolidated power, and the writers who were executed, imprisoned or exiled in the aftermath.