Persian Transformative Femininity in 19th Century:

From Nasser-e-din Shah Period (1848-1896)

To Constitutional Revolution Season (1896-1925)

Written by: Sobhan Rezaee

Cultural Studies Department, Social Sciences School, Allame Tabatabai University, Iran.



Abstract
The second sphere of Qajar administration on Iran associated with deep social transition toward modernization, which changed sexuality patterns, masculinity and femininity, completely. This passage was begun from Nasser-e-din Shah era, accompanying with reinforcing of European intercultural communication, and continued through the Constitutional movement. So, for understanding current femininity transformation, we focused on these two outstanding periods: First, the kingdom duration of Nasser-e-Din Shah, who was the most stable Qajar king for 50 years. And the other is the constitutional movement, which covered next Qajar kings that transited the country to the modernity and westernization.
Toward this aim, the author applied the Sexuality Paradigm Model (Rezaee, 2008) on the historical biocultural context. Regarding the first level, we refer to autobiographies books that remained from Nasser-e-Din Shah kingship. In addition, current newspapers on the constitutional movement era were put beside other historical reports for the second period. On both of periods, historical reports were reviewed and categorize based on the sexuality paradigm criteria and then documentary study was applied to analyze different aspects of Qajar sexuality.
Meanwhile, our research results show that (1) although daughters had been socialized for a domestic life in Nasser-e- din Shah era, social pedagogization evolutions in education improved their positions in social life in the second period. (2) On the first duration, marriage was a part of extended family and was developed through next dimensions in temporary and polygamy matrimonies. However, on the second one, marriage was defined for nuclear families, based on individual consent and so, it limited other rivals. (3) Through Constitutional movement, female role, actually, was transformed from a sexual object, which had associated with minimizing of inter-personal communications between two genders, to a social subject, who tried for national and gendered interests, in the new era. (4) Regarding social reproductions of Iranian society, both of periods were formed on European inter-cultural communication and finally in Mashrotiat period was continued to find a societal utopia similar to the contemporary European civilization for approaching the country and genders in modernization.

Keywords: Sexuality, Femininity, Qajar administration, Constitutional Movement, Nasser-e-din Shah Kingship, Iran