Event overview
Talk on political theology by Dr Eskandar Sadeghi-Boroujerdi (Politics and IR Goldsmiths)
In this presentation I argue that the political thought of one of twentieth-century Iran’s foremost intellectuals, Jalal Al-e Ahmad (1923–1969) and his seminal work Gharbzadegi (1962), often translated as ‘West-struck-ness’ or ‘Westoxication’, provides crucial insights into state-formation in modern Iran and the ways in which colonial capitalism historically stratified the global economic order in accordance with what W.E.B. Du Bois famously called the ‘colour line’. In this presentation, I will also discuss Al-e Ahmad’s travelogue documenting his visit to Israel in early 1963, posthumously titled Safar beh velayat-e ʿezraʾil (Journey to the Province of the Angel of Death), focusing on the brief infatuation of anti-Soviet socialists in the League of Iranian Socialists with socialist Zionism, and Al-e Ahmad’s discussion of political sovereignty and theo-politics in Israel. In bringing his critique of the 'racial state' and elaborations upon political theology into conversation, I argue that Al-e Ahmad articulates a powerful critique of the modern nation-state as a colonial social form.
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 6 May 2021 | 6:00pm - 7:30pm |
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