Evaluate the factors that contributed to the cause of the

Iranian Revolution
Religion is the opium of the people Karl Marx INTRO ?
Make a judgment
based on criteria;
determine the
value of
INTRO Revolutions can be defined as the collapse of the political
order and its replacement by a new. 1 This is a fitting definition for
the Iranian revolution of 1979, which can be described as one of the
most epochal events of the twentieth century. There was not one
solidary factor which caused the outbreak of this revolution, there
was a series of significant factors which contributed to it. These
include Pre-revolutionary tensions including social, political and
economic strains, Shah Pahlavis leadership, and Imam Khomeinis
role in the revolution.
I don't know how to start the essay and do I evaluate more on
the causes in the introduction? I dont like this introduction at all.
BODY 1- Prior to the revolution, there were pre-existing tensions in
the Iranian society including social, political and economic strains.
Social
Between 1953-1963 much poverty remained among the Iranian
people the gap between the rich and poor grew
At the time of the Revolution, it was estimated that as much as onethird of the population of Tehran and one-quarter of the population
of other large cities consisted of persons living on the margins of
urban society
Stringent social divisions
Political
Under the Pahlavi dynasty secularism increased and the power
and influence of Shia scholars decreased, and the Shah allied
himself with secularists in conflict with Muslims who held
traditionalist values on such matters as tobacco, alcohol, movies,
gambling and foreign dress
Conflicting religious groups
Economic
Rapid growth of industrialisation and imperialism Shah increased
Irans tie with the US disliked (western oil consortium agreement)

1 Arjomand, Said Amir. World Politics: Iran's Islamic Revolution In

Comparative Perspective. 1st ed. Cambridge University Press, 2015.
JSTOR.org

Many Iranians struggling economically

World Politics: Iran's Islamic Revolution In Comparative Perspective
BODY 2 - Shah Rehza Pahlavi was an incompetent leader.
Corrupt, autocratic leader, dictator
Used violence to suppress opposition
Ignored public criticism
Showed great disregard for Islamist traditions not good
majority of the country is Muslim.
Islamic Fundamentalism confronts modern secularism Iranian
revolution
1963 White Revolution renewed effort to westernize and
modernize Iran led to widening gap between rich and poor
Need to find more on Qualities as a leader
BODY 3- Ayatollah Khomeini was a significant figure in the Iranian
revolution that used religion as a catalyst for gaining momentum
and support in the revolution.
Khomeinis rhetoric evolved into a call to remove monarchy and put
in its place a government dominated by the mujtahids
Need more on Khomeinis role in the revolution
Still having difficulty picking out relevant information from academic
articles I will give you a more thorough version of this when I pull
the information together.