Iran’s intellectuals in Qajar era and the Transition Possibilityfrom "Government-oriented Pattern" to the "State-oriented Pattern
Subject Areas : Research in Theoritical PoliticsKeywords: The State Intellectuals Common good General rights Religion,
Abstract :
In the ancient time, the government was at the center of theories, with consideration to the given religious nature of political community and desirable arrangement. By the entrance of modern thoughts into Iranian world in Qajar era, we witnessed the destruction of these beliefs and the need to rethink about them. The intellectuals were in charge of these affairs. How much they were successful in rethinking of these beliefs? The intellectuals faced with practical obstacles in the inherited beliefs from ancient time. So like the ancient thinkers, they set the right use of political authority as the main subject in their theories, Instead of addressing the foundations of political community and government. However,to rethink political orders and the application of political powers by the government was not possible without knowing about the nature of political community. So with reception of implicit theory about political community and by the use of “common good” and “general rights” by intellectuals, they rethought about dominion theory and the relation between religion and political order and stated a new theory about government. But the result was a gradual tension between the old beliefs and the new beliefs of political order and the appearance of juridical modern political theories. Although these theories tried to resist against new political order, But for the first time, instead of characteristics of an ideal ruler, they had to pay attention to the nature of political community. So the appearance of intellectual thought could put the query of government’s nature and political community in the center of political theories of Iran’s thinkers, and pave the way for gradual transition from "Government-oriented pattern" to the "State-oriented pattern" of political theories.