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Censorship of Literature in Post-Revolutionary Iran: Politics and Culture since 1979
Censorship pervades all aspects of political, social and cultural life in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Faced with strict state control of cultural output, Iranian authors and writers have had to adapt their work to avoid falling foul of the censors. In this pioneering study, Alireza Abiz offers an in-depth, interdisciplinary analysis of how censorship and the political order of Iran have influenced contemporary Persian literature, both in terms of content and tone. As censorship is unrecorded and not officially acknowledged in Iran, the author has examined newspaper records and conducted first-hand interviews with Iranian poets and writers. looking into the ways in which poets and writers attempt to subvert the codes of censorship by using symbolism and figurative language to hide their more controversial messages. A ground-breaking analysis, this book will be vital reading for anyone interested in contemporary cultural politics and literature in Iran.
224 pages, Hardcover
Published December 24, 2020
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April 23, 2025
A Sharp, Insightful Look at Literary Censorship in Iran
This book offers a clear, well-organized exploration of how literature is censored in Iran, and it does so with impressive depth. The author has done a remarkable job gathering material that’s often difficult to access, and even harder to piece together meaningfully. The research is solid, and the analysis is sharp.
What makes this work stand out is its precision. It doesn’t rely on generalizations or emotional appeals—instead, it lays out the mechanics of censorship, tracks patterns over time, and highlights how both writers and institutions respond to these pressures. There’s a strong sense of context, and the author never loses sight of the broader cultural and political landscape.
The author's insight into how censorship shapes not only what is published, but how writers write and how readers read, is particularly profound.
This book offers a clear, well-organized exploration of how literature is censored in Iran, and it does so with impressive depth. The author has done a remarkable job gathering material that’s often difficult to access, and even harder to piece together meaningfully. The research is solid, and the analysis is sharp.
What makes this work stand out is its precision. It doesn’t rely on generalizations or emotional appeals—instead, it lays out the mechanics of censorship, tracks patterns over time, and highlights how both writers and institutions respond to these pressures. There’s a strong sense of context, and the author never loses sight of the broader cultural and political landscape.
The author's insight into how censorship shapes not only what is published, but how writers write and how readers read, is particularly profound.
Displaying 1 of 1 review