On April 8, 2022, the Iran 1400 Project spoke with Dr. Ali Mirsepassi about his book The Discovery of Iran: Taghi Arani, A Radical Cosmopolitan. Dr. Mirsepassi outlined the key events in Taghi Arani’s life, analyzing his work and his influence on Iranian nationalism, Marxist materialism, and cosmopolitanism. A vibrant Q&A session featured a back and forth between Dr. Mirsepassi and Dr. Ervand Abrahamian, where they debated Arani’s relationship (or lack thereof) with nationalism and Arianism. Other questions further addressed Arani’s impact on Iran as a whole and how Iranians can still learn from him today.
Sydney Martin is the Program Manager of the Iran 1400 Project. He received his BA in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures from the University of Texas at Austin. Prior to joining the Iran 1400 Project, he studied in Tajikistan with a Fulbright-Hays scholarship and interned at the Atlantic Council's Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, as well as the Critical Threats Project.
