The modernist approach to technology
An important pre-condition for the extensive propagandistic use of broadcast by the Pahlavi authorities was the spread of radio sets during the 1930s. Gradually, they found their way into modern Iranian households and, as a former luxury product, epitomized the advancement of the new urban middle class - the social group that, by and large, benefitted the most from modernization during the 1920s and 1930s. Members of it held positions in the new administration apparatus or worked in other white-collar professions. These middle-class Iranians were not just passively modernized through state-enforced reforms, they themselves acted as pioneers promoting a progressive way of life, primarily by adopting a modern Western lifestyle. By integrating technical devices into their daily routine and enjoying the comforts of a mechanized living, they facilitated a wider spread of technology in Iranian society. Years before the first radio station in Tehran started its programme, the pages of the Ettela‘at were filled with advertisements for multi-band radios from famous companies like Blaupunkt, Lorenz, or Philips.39 Radio stations in Berlin, Rome, and London brought the sound of the “big, wide world” into the living rooms of the proud owners of such receivers,40 who thereby prepared the ground for a national radio broadcast.41
Newspaper advertisements can be a valuable source of information about the advent and integration of new technologies into the lives of their readers. In the case of Ettela‘at, the modern middle class can be considered as the paper’s main target group.42 When we look at the commercial advertisements of the 1920s and 1930s, we should keep in mind that they do not necessarily reflect actual supply and demand - this is particularly true for frequently found advertisements covering high-end products such as automobiles. Assuming that collective ideas, ideals, and desires are incorporated into the advertising message, one can rather perceive such commercials as a projection surface for images of a better life and thus gain insight into the new middle class’s general concept of a modern Iranian life.43
This notion adheres in great part to the global perception of technology at the time, which can, to some extent, be ascribed to the fact that advertisements for imported goods were apparently not devised exclusively for the Iranian market, but followed international designs. This can be easily recognized in the artwork, which in Iranian advertisements was usually identical to that used by foreign companies for its sales promotions abroad.44 As in other countries, luxury commodities like automobiles, watches, and cameras were promoted as status symbols and suited, in the Iranian case, the modern middle-class members’ desire to distinguish themselves from the mass of ordinary Iranians through objects which until then only the Qajar aristocracy had been able to afford.45 Together with less expensive products like home appliances or communication devices, they moreover promised consumers a more comfortable, “mechanized” life as well as the promise of saving time.46
That members of the modern Iranian middle class also adopted technology to secure their social status becomes apparent in advertisements for “scientific toys.” They were obviously targeting progressive parents who wanted to familiarize their children with new technology at an early age and thus raise their future opportunities.47 The readers’ general desire for qualifications and education is consistently reflected in another set of advertisements, e.g. for gramophone records by Linguaphone which promised to be “the easiest way to learn foreign languages.”48 The strong demand for learning foreign languages is furthermore evident in small advertisements for languages classes or textbooks.49 In contrast to commercial advertisements, these classified ads were placed by individuals or institutions, usually to offer a commodity or a service to one person or a small group of customers and thus give a more accurate picture of the real demand-and-supply situation.50 The urban middle class’s lack of profound foreign language skills was caused by its quite recent social advancement. In the past, only elite families had been able to send their children to study abroad. Even between 1928 and 1933, at the height of the official programme by the Pahlavi state to dispatch students to the West, only a total number of 640 young Iranians studied in Europe, the majority with an upper-class background.51 Most members of the modern middle class had graduated from Iranian schools modelled on European institutions and thus only had a basic knowledge of foreign languages, which was not on a par with the language skills of foreign-educated members of the upper class.
To conclude, one can say that for members of the modern middle class, technology served first and foremost to satisfy their own interests. Nevertheless, several among them felt responsible enough to contribute actively to the modernization of Iranian society as a whole. This “mission” becomes particularly apparent in the editorial content of the Ettela‘at, especially in articles by authors from a middle-class background who deal with the question of
“How to be modern in Iran.” These articles started a true modernization debate in the paper and must be seen apart from the state-commissioned propaganda contributions that solely declared the general need for reform and praised the already achieved progress. Those who participated in this actual debate on modernization were, on the one hand, members of Ettela ‘at’s editorial staff or freelance authors and, on the other hand, readers of the paper, who regularly wrote letters to the editor. They all can be defined as belonging to the urban middle class52 and represent a group of “concerned individuals”53 that I prefer to designate as “middle class modernists” or in short as “modernists.” It becomes apparent in their articles that they considered themselves as the avant-garde of a new society in the Pahlavi state and, therefore, intended to be role models for the mass of ordinary Iranians still living a traditional life. The articles by modernist authors also reflect much more personal concerns about the practical dimension of modernization, i.e. the actual implementation of reforms as well as possible negative effects of incorrectly adopted Western modernity, if compared to articles written by the official “middle-class intelligentsia” that convey a more general and ideological notion.54
Most of the middle-class modernists widely supported the state's ambitious reform agenda. They believed a strong centralized state to be of utmost importance for it to succeed, and this belief in a patriarchal state was widespread among them. Hence, many modernists advocated a rigorous enforcement of the reforms by the official authorities and - as can be seen from further examples discussed below - again and again requested the government to attend to this duty. With regard to the introduction of new technologies, an editorial article from 1931 points out the state’s shortcomings in the execution of modernization measures:
Transportation in this country has shifted to the automobile for some years now, lorries have arrived in Iran, and different routes of motor transportation have been established. Also, the state has provided the [necessary] facilities. It has leveled and asphalted the national roadways, built the basic communication lines ... , and means of transportation have started operating nationwide.
Thus, special attention has been paid to the basics, but since no attention has been paid to the details, the principles and provisions (osul va moqarrarat) for transportation in Iran have not been codified [and] this useful means has emerged as unusable.55
Observing the process of modernization in their country very carefully, the middle-class modernists not only focused on the government's performance, but also tried to contribute actively to the spread of a “correct” modernity by instructing and guiding the common people, who were largely unfamiliar with the comforts of modern life. Particularly in articles criticizing the general misuse of modern technical devices, the modernists' concern to educate their compatriots becomes evident. The reference point for a proper application of technology was always the Western societies from which technical devices were imported; and they were supposed to be adopted in a manner as similar as possible. The middle-class modernists derived their authority to instruct the common people from their knowledge of European countries, based on their education or travels. In their articles they often refer to visits to Western countries, depicting the modern life there and contrasting it with the Iranian situation. Their fear of inferiority caused by the ignorance of their own people is omnipresent in the debate. And, indeed, reports from Western travellers to Iran about quite peculiar ideas and uses of technology had stoked these fears, a prime example being Lord Curzon’s observation on how the telegraph was perceived by many Iranians: At the end of the nineteenth century, telegraph stations were considered as asylum (bast) resulting from the popular belief that the telegraph wires ended directly at the foot of the Shah’s throne in Tehran.56
