Following the 1953 coup that toppled the democratically elected government of Mossadeq and restored the rule of the Shah in Iran, Mostafa Sho¿aiyan became a key figure on the country¿s militant left. From a life underground he contributed significantly to the study of Iranian history and politics, and developed a unique theory of revolution.

A Rebel¿s Journey provides fascinating insights into the life and work of this singular theoretician. Peyman Vahabzadeh sets Sho¿aiyan¿s thought in the context of his time and place, and explores how his revolutionary theory might contribute to today¿s expanding movements for social justice and liberation.

Acknowledgements

Abbreviations for Sho`aiyan¿s Major Works

Note on Translation and Transliteration

Introduction: Reactivating Distorted Histories

1 The Making of a Singular Revolutionary

2 Experiences and Experiments in the 1960s

3 Facing the Fadaiyan

4 On Intellectuals

5 Frontal Politics, Frontal Thinking

6 Rebellious Essence, Rebellious Action

Conclusion: The Twenty-First-Century Revolutionary Theory

Appendix: The Question of the People

Images

Bibliography

Notes

Index

Peyman Vahabzadeh is Professor of Sociology at the University of Victoria, where his research focuses on the power of collective action and social movements. He is the author of Violence and Nonviolence and editor of Iran's Struggles for Social Justice, among other works in English and Persian. He lives in Victoria, British Columbia.