Genealogy of the Concept of 'Independence' in Contemporary Iranian Political Discourses

Abstract

The concept of "independence" is a foundational notion in contemporary Iranian political discourse, one that has undergone significant semantic, ideological, and discursive transformations from the Constitutional Revolution to the Islamic Republic. This article, grounded in Michel Foucault’s genealogical approach and employing a power/knowledge discourse analysis framework, explores the historical-political evolution of the meaning of independence in Iran. The findings reveal that independence, in the discourse of the Constitutionalists, was framed as a reaction against domestic tyranny and foreign domination; during the nationalist movement of the 1950s, it was represented as economic sovereignty and nationalization of resources; and in the discourse of the 1979 Revolution, it was elevated to an ideological and structural principle. In the Islamic Republic, independence became institutionalized as one of the core pillars of the political system, reflected in the Constitution, official rhetoric, and cultural and foreign policy strategies. In recent decades, reformist and moderate discourses have sought to redefine independence in terms of international engagement, sustainable development, and diplomatic rationality. This article argues that independence has never been a static or universally fixed notion, but rather a site of semantic struggle among competing discourses. Analyzing this concept offers new insights into the relationship between power, meaning, identity, and political legitimacy in modern Iranian politics.