God Knows I Tried. An experimental approach to orientalism and the practice of writing. (excerpts)

Preface  |  1  |  65  |  66  |  81  |  83  |  85  |  115  |  116  |  118  |  Bibliography

When the Qajars designated Tehran the capital city of Iran in 1798, they were partaking in an age-old custom of every new oligarchy choosing its own little perch after coming to power; Ardebil, Tabriz, Qazwin, Isfahan, Shiraz and Mashad have all had their turn at becoming capitals. A while later, in the course of the first few decades of the 20th century, while internal opportunism and western misgivings are once again proving parliamentary democracy a difficult thing, a new royal family, the Pahlavis, gradually consolidate their position until they eventually enjoy more political weight than the Qajars ever hoped for. But they donít move from the Qajar capital. Instead, in 1934, King Reza decides to Haussmannize the city. Even before Rezaís ascension to the throne, Tehran bore an unmistakable geographic segregation between rich and poor, with its richer parts bordering on the Alborz mountain range to the north - good for skiing, hiking, and plenty of fresh air - and its southern parts spreading out into what is now a heavily polluted working class area (only much later does the urban sprawl go east- and westward). Rezaís boulevards triumphantly (re)inscribe this axis for a long time to come; almost 50 years later, in 1983, there are three motorways running north-south, connecting the upper neighborhoods with the center, but not a single one going from east to west.