Touba

Taylor Fawcett Touba and the Meaning of Night
Throughout the 1900s, the country presently known as Iran underwent many changes and periods of instability. With a variety of different successions of rulers, political revolts and uprisings, and different political philosophies and ideals coming into play, the country went through turmoil and chaos to become what it is today. The novel Touba and the Meaning of Night by Shahruush Parsipur tells the story of the life of a young Iranian woman named Touba and how she dealt with the shaky state of her country during the 20th century. As Touba grows up and experiences different stages of her life, Iran grows along with her.
Touba’s childhood coincides with Iran under the Qajar dynasty and the ruler Naser O-Din Shah, who ruled from 1848-1896. The reign of Naser O-Din Shah was filled with troubles. During the period of his reign, European powers were zeroing in to gain control of Iran, with Britain and Russia as the leaders. Touba constantly comes in contact with the influence these two superpowers caused, especially through Mr. Khiabani and the other parliamentary individuals who favored a constitution and supported Britain and Russia. One aspect of Naser O-Din Shah’s rule that is outlined in Touba and the Meaning of Night is the Cossack Brigade of 1879. Russian officers and weaponry were supplied to Iran to enforce a strong military to defend the country from invasion and take over.[1] Touba experiences the Cossack Brigade after her marriage to the prince, Feraydun Mirza. On their way to see Prince Gil, the carriage carrying the Prince and his bride constantly is stopped by the Cossack Brigade and asked a password to get through the streets. The Cossack Brigade eventually dissolved, due the Naser O-Din Shah’s shaky regime including the selling of offices, bribery and extortion.
The next significant event that is explained in both Touba’s story and Iran’s history is the Constitutional Revolution, lasting from approximately 1905-1911. This occurred during the reign of Mozafar O-Din Shah, who ruled from 1896-1907, and Mohammad Ali Shah, reigning from 1907-1909. As stated, a man who saves Touba in her early life during her marriage to Haji Mahmud named Mr. Khiabani was a leader of the constitutional revolution. Touba becomes enamored with Mr. Khiabani, therefore increasing her desire to know more about the subject of the constitution, the revolution, and the influence of Britain and Russia. With a constitution, Iran sought to modernize the country quickly, effectively and efficiently. The members of the triangle alliance were the main supporters of this constitution, including religious scholars (ulama), merchants (bazaaris), and nationalist students. These groups truly believed that they could used a constitution and a constitutional government to limit the authority and power of the shah. As shown in Touba and the Meaning of Night, frequent disputes between the shah and his supporters verses the supporters of a constitution caused the need for the remains of the Cossack Brigade to take action, as experienced by Touba and Price Feraydun Mirza. While Mr. Khiabani was a support of the constitution, Prince Feraydun Mirza was completely against any type of constitutional monarchy and was in support of the shah. He saw that Touba was fond of Mr. Khiabani, and believed that this corrupted her political views. The Mr. Khiabani displayed in the novel is really Mohammad Khiabani, who was a member of Iran’s parliament. He “represents the elusive promise of Persian democracy.”[2] He explained to Touba what he claimed to be horrors that the British (the source of the idea of constitutionalism for the Iranians) inflicted upon the country of Iran and its territories. He explained that the water in Tehran was controlled by the British and periodically shut off, and that the ground was continually dirtied with asphalt so that the water could not be clean even when it was running. Due to the passion of the revolutionaries for their constitution, the Constitutional Revolution of Iran was considered a “liberal version” of the French Revolution. Russia and Britain had tried to suppress this revolution, as it limited the power of the Qajar Dynasty[3] and halted the increasing European influence in Iranian finances. The two superpowers tried to halt the revolution by putting Mohammad Ali Shah on the throne, who proved to be “weak and ineffective”.[4]
In 1909, an event occurred that greatly affected Iran and also the life of Touba. Forces from Azerbaijan and Bakhitiyari took part in a coup that overthrew the shah that Britain and Russia had installed and reinstalled in the constitution in July.[5] For the ulama, bazaaris, nationalist students, and the rest of the citizens of Iran who followed the constitution, this was, for the most part, a success. This greatly affected Touba, however. As stated, Prince Feraydun Mirza was against the constitution and in total support of the shah. This coup forced him to flee to Russia, leaving Touba alone to raise her four children, as shown in the beginning of Chapter 2. Prince Feraydun Mirza eventually returns, but is plagued with bad luck that coincides with the turmoil that Iran would face in the coming years.
The reign of Reza Shah Pahlavi lasted from 1925-1941. Reza Shah overthrew the government in 1921 by bribing the Shah into installing allies of his to important positions in government, eventually taking control over them. Reza Shah started his reign by doing various positive things for the country of Iran, including contributing to the military, bringing in new forms of weapons, and suppressed ‘relentless campaigns of tribal rebellions.”[6] Later on in his rule, though, he uses his regime to torture his opponents. Touba lives through this and is at great risk with her marriage into the Iranian royal family, but avoids being murdered, as her husband, the prince, was in complete support of the Shah. Even though Touba was inclined to support the constitution due to her feelings for Mr. Khiabani, she was saved due to her marriage.
During the time of World War II and after, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the son of Reza Shah Pahlavi, came to power and reign from 1941 to 1979. Through Touba’s son Ismael, the effects of his reign are shown. In 1953, there was another coup against the Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddeq. Touba also goes through the events of the Islamic Revolution of 1979, and eventually passes away.
In conclusion, the life of Touba in Touba and the Meaning of Night coincides with the life and evolution of Iran as a legitimate country. Struggles in Iran’s government go along with struggles of Touba’s life, as they grow together and decline together.
Bibliography
Cleveland,William L.. A History of the Modern Middle East. 4th ed. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 2009.
Parsipur,Shahruush. Touba and the Meaning of Night. New York: The Feminist Press, 2008.

[1] William L. Cleveland and Martin Bunton, A History of the Modern Middle East (Westview Press, 2009): 112
[2] Shahruush Parsipur, Touba and the Meaning of Night (The Feminist Press, 2008): xii
[3] William L. Cleveland and Martin Bunton, A History of the Modern Middle East (Westview Press, 2009): 146
[4] William L. Cleveland and Martin Bunton, A History of the Modern Middle East (Westview Press, 2009): 144
[5] William L. Cleveland and Martin Bunton, A History of the Modern Middle East (Westview Press, 2009): 146
[6] William L. Cleveland and Martin Bunton, A History of the Modern Middle East (Westview Press, 2009): 186