Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1
Student, Department of Political Science, Faculty of Law and Political Science, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran.
2
Department of Political Science, Faculty of Law and Political Science, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran.
10.22080/sod.2026.31269.1041
Abstract
The intellectuals of the Constitutional Era realized that reforming the political system of the Qajar dynasty was impossible without a transformation in the institution of property, and they emphasized the necessity of this change in their works. However, their views on the method of this transformation were not uniform, and influenced by Western thought, they proposed different solutions. This study, employing the method of signification analysis (dalālat-pazhūhī), aims to explain the relationship between individualism and collectivism and the concept of property in the views of four prominent intellectuals (Malkom Khan, Akhundzadeh, Aqa Khan Kermani, and Talibov). The findings indicate that Aqa Khan Kermani and Talibov, with a focus on the "public good" and collectivism, considered the regulatory role of the state in the matter of property as essential. Conversely, Akhundzadeh and Malkom Khan, leaning towards individualism, defined property based on the individual's "labor" as its foundation and right, minimizing state intervention in this sphere. Consequently, this study demonstrates that the "individualism–collectivism" dichotomy was not merely a theoretical distinction but a determining factor in the formation of two distinct paths for the socio-economic development of Iran during the Constitutional Era. This discovery reveals the historical roots of the enduring conflict between "the state as regulator" versus "property as an individual right" in contemporary Iranian history and provides an analytical framework for understanding the intellectual origins of current debates on the relationship between the state and the market.
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