Women and the political process in twentieth-century Iran, by Parvin Paidar is an examination of twentieth-century Iranian politics through the lens of gender relations. Paidar argues that women, and the discourse over gender issues, played a critical role throughout the evolution of Iranian politics. Paidar is particularly concerned with how the of the concept of modernity changed over time, and how these changes affected women in Iran.
             Paidar breaks the changes in the conception of modernity down into four phases. Each phase differs on its view of gender roles; indeed the role of women is at the heart of each distinction. The first phase covered by Paidar is the discourse of modernity around the time of the Constitutional Revolution. This conception of modernity sought to emulate the western powers. Paidar focuses on how women's emancipation was seen as a necessity for a secular and modern state, as well as how groups of women were instrumental in instigating social change. The second phase took place during what Paidar refers to as the era of nation building. Paidar emphasizes the contingency of this era by highlighting policies as a reaction to practical demands on a newly formed government. Paidar demonstrates how the role of the state was redefined during this period and argues that the definition of modernity came to simultaneously include and reject various western features.
             Paidar's third phase is coined the discourse of modernity in the era of nationalism. In this phase modernity became associated with liberal nationalism. Paidar argues that for the first time since the constitutional revolution nationalism was legitimately expressed outside the structure of the state. The forth phase, the era of modernization, envisioned a modernity that rejected western gender roles. Modernity was constructed along Shii Islamic lines with rhetoric emphasizing tradition when in fact this construction of modernity was continge...