Reading Gandhi, Fanon and Gramsci through Iranian Eyes: Tracing Transnational Connections

In this paper, we read the political thought of Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948), Frantz Fanon (1925–1961) and Antonio Gramsci (1891–1937) through the eyes of the Iranian revolutionary thinker Jalal Al-e Ahmad (1923–1969). In so doing, we explore the connections that link these diverse thinkers to Al-e Ahmad, as well as to each other. Focusing on Al-e Ahmad’s engagement with (1) Gandhi’s critique of colonial modernity, (2) Fanon’s critique of colonial violence, and (3) Gramsci’s views on the role of the intellectual, we show how the revolutionary political thought of Al-e Ahmad was inherently cosmopolitan despite its apparent preoccupation with more localised concerns. We argue that reading Gandhi, Fanon and Gramsci through the lens of Al-e Ahmad in this way allows us to uncover the transnational connections that tie together the thinkers under study, underlining their shared world-making project.