OSHER 5 - Iran: Its History, People, Politics, and Religion

The achievements of the great Persian Empires live on in the minds of Iranians today--but in reality they are a people faced with an uncertain future. They exist in the midst of a hostile world, burdened by economic sanctions and torn by internal political strife. Iran, a country rich with natural resources and steeped in a proud heritage, underwent a traumatic transition from a major regional power governed by a Western-backed Shah to an isolated Islamic semi-theocracy determined to champion the oppressed Shi'a masses in a Sunni Muslim world. Iran's religious and political leaders cast themselves as heroes on one hand, but they have managed to earn the animosity of almost every state in the region. Join us for an in-depth look at what makes Iran tick, its colorful and fascinating history, its gregarious people, the foreign influences on the country, and why it presents a vexing problem to its neighbors and to today's world leaders.