Book ‘In Search of Lost Time’ on bookstore shelves

According to a reporter from the Iran Book News Agency (IBNA), the book ‘In Search of Lost Time,’ compiled and edited by Maryam Peiman, has been published by Gam-e-Noo publishing house.

This book is the result of collaboration among more than 80 individuals who were involved in the Cultural Revolution in some way; from those who were students during those years and experienced deprivation of education, to individuals who held or continue to hold positions in policy-making institutions.

Although less than five decades have passed since the occurrence of the Cultural Revolution in universities, the dominant narrative has not allowed the perspective of the vanquished to emerge and be heard. The essence, cause, and nature of this impactful event on the daily life of the university community then and even now remain ambiguous. The studies conducted are scattered; existing archives in the vast amount of virtual space information are hidden, and documents and books in study centers are often single copies, unlabeled, dateless, and in one word, unknown.

Usually, the primary sources for historical research are based on documents provided by hierarchical institutions, including governments. However, not only are documents related to this event, especially from the Headquarters / Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution, the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology, Academic Jihad, the Prime Minister’s Office / Presidency, universities, and documentation centers, as well as security records, not accessible to researchers, but fundamentally, as described by Neil Ferguson, ‘great historical transformations are often the result of groups that are not well-recorded and lack formal organization.’

Based on this, the necessity of referring to multiple narratives and diverse voices becomes evident; an approach that the present book adopts with a combined method, seeking to distance itself from the ‘tyranny of documents’.

Seyed Abdolamir Nabavi, Mohammad Baqer Khorramshad, Leila Fallahati, Ali Ashraf Nazari, Maryam Baradaran, Saeed Golkar, Majid Fooladian, Amin Majidi Fard, Mohammad Sharafzadeh Baradar, Saeed Peyvandi, Ehsan Hooshmand, and Alireza Molaei Tavani are among the authors of this multi-article book.

The book ‘In Search of Lost Time,’ compiled and edited by Maryam Peiman, has been published in 757 pages by Gam-e-Noo publishing house for eight hundred and fifty-five tomans.