The Great Satan vs. the Mad Mullahs: How the United States and Iran Demonize Each Other

by William O. Beeman

Overview

For more than twenty-five years, the United States and Iran have been diplomatically estranged, each characterizing the other not only as a political adversary, but also as devious, threatening, and essentially evil. According to William O. Beeman’s provocative book, The “Great Satan” vs. the “Mad Mullāhs,” such demonization is a self-fulfilling prophecy, as both countries have embraced exactly the policies and rhetoric that would particularly threaten or insult the other. Drawing on his experience as a linguistic anthropologist, Beeman parses how political leaders have used historical references, religious associations, and the mythology of evil to inflame their own citizens against the foreign country, and proposes a way out of this dangerous debacle.
 
“William Beeman’s analysis of dissonant perceptions of Iran and the USA is compelling and important. . . . I am particularly grateful for this work.”—James Peacock, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
 
“[Beeman] is more interested in informing the reader than in impressing his peers. The other strength of the book lies in the author’s knowledge of Iranian history and culture. . . . It challenges the reader and forces him to question stereotypes about Iran and Washington’s perspective on the country.”—Abbas William Samii, Middle East Journal
 
 
 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780226041476
Publisher:	University of Chicago Press
Publication date:	04/15/2008
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

William O. Beeman is professor and chair of anthropology at the University of Minnesota. He has also worked as a consultant to the United States State Department and Department of Defense. He is the author of Iraq: State in Search of a Nation and Language, Status and Power in Iran.
 
 
 



William O. Beeman is professor and chair of anthropology at the University of Minnesota. He has also worked as a consultant to the United States State Department and Department of Defense. He is the author of Iraq: State in Search of a Nation and Language, Status and Power in Iran.
 
 
 

Table of Contents

Preface to the Paperback Edition
Preface
Acknowledgments

1. Discourse and Demonization
2. American Myths
3. Middle Eastern Myths
4. Discourse and Rhetoric
5. Images of the Great Satan
6. Images of the Mad Mullāh
7. The Framework of U.S.-Iranian Relations: Modernization and Development as an Index of National Worth
8. The Sins of the United States
9. The Sins of Iran
10. The Birth of Postmodern Conflict: How Iranian Media Came of Age
11. Living with Iran: Resistance as Postmodern Discourse

Notes
Comprehensive Bibliography
Index

What People are Saying About This

Michael M. J. Fischer

"Bill Beeman, the author of the classic text, Language, Status and Power in Iran, returns now with a provocative and timely analysis of why Iranian and U.S. diplomats are caught in vicious circles of cultural miscommunication and mutual demonization. Must reading for diplomats, policy wonks, pundits, and concerned citizens."

Mary Catherine Bateson

"William Beeman stands first among American anthropologists in applying an understanding of cultural patterns to foreign policy, especially in connecting conflicts between Iran and the United States with underlying differences in patterns of thought and expression. Everyone concerned with policy making and reporting on the Middle East needs to study his thoughtful analyses."

R. K. Ramazani

"If you want to know why we are so ignorant about the United States-Iran relations, read this book. Never before has the mutual demonization between these two governments been so systematically described and analyzed from an anthropological perspective. Rooted in their histories, mythologies, and cultures, the conflict between them, the author argues, is essentially symbolic rather than substantive. Therefore, reconciliation between the two countries is 'inevitable,' but the challenge ahead lies in finding a way to make it happen."

James Peacock

"William Beeman's analysis of dissonant perceptions of Iran and USA is compelling and important for everyone, citizen or policyshaper, who wishes to understand or influence relations between Islam, Iran, and us. He speaks knowledgeably, wisely, and plainly, based on direct experience.... I am particularly grateful for this work."

Marvin Zonis

"Bill Beeman is perfectly attuned to Iran's secular and Shi'ite cultures. He has translated his profound 'feel' for Iran into a work that makes it possible for an American audience to understand and even empathize with Iranians. Until the United States Government is capable of doing that, however, little progress can be made in fashioning a new relation with Iran."

Editorial Reviews

[Beeman] is more interested in informing the reader than in impressing his peers. The other strength of the book lies in the author’s knowledge of Iranian history and culture. . . . It challenges the reader and forces him to question stereotypes about Iran and Washington’s perspective on the country.

Abbas William Samii

William Beeman’s analysis of dissonant perceptions of Iran and the USA is compelling and important. . . . I am particularly grateful for this work.

James Peacock

If you want to know why we are so ignorant about the United States-Iran relations, read this book. Never before has the mutual demonization between these two governments been so systematically described and analyzed from an anthropological perspective.”

R. K. Ramazani

"Drawing on his experience as a linguistic anthropologist, Beeman parses how political leaders have used historical references, religious associations, and the mythology of evil to inflame their own citizens against the other foreign country and proposes a way out of this dangerous debacle."

Muslim World Book Review

“[Beeman] is more interested in informing the reader than in impressing his peers. The other strength of the book lies in the author’s knowledge of Iranian history and culture. . . . It challenges the reader and forces him to question stereotypes about Iran and Washington’s perspective on the country.”—Abbas William Samii, Middle East Journal

— Abbas William Samii

Middle East Journal

Regardless of the reader's viewpoint, this book is a challenging analysis by an anthropologist of an international conflict that threatens to get out of control. For that reason alone, this is a timely book.” —MultiCultural Review

“[B]eeman is a good writer, who eschews the scholarly jargon that frequently makes academic books and articles unintelligble to all but specialists in a specific field. He is writing for the non-specialist, and he is more interested in informing the reader than in impressing his peers. The other strength of the book lies in the author's knowledge of Iranian history and culture. Beeman's discussion of economic development under the Pahlavi monarchy and how Americans in the country lived at the time is imformative, and his observation that Iranians hate being told what to do by people with whom they have no relationship should be taken under advisement by everybody….The Great Satan vs. the Mad Mullahs raises many questions and is problematic, those are additional reasons for reading it. It challenges the reader and forces him to question stereotypes about Iran and Washington's perspective on the country. It also encourages the reader to consider Tehran's perceptions.” —Middle East Jourbanal

From the Publisher