Book Review:

Oral History of 40 Years

Compiled by Gholamreza Azizi
(Retired Faculty Member, Institute for Documents, Oral History Researcher)
Translated by Fazel Shirzad

2026-1-19

■ Oral History of 40 Years: A History of Armored Training of the IRGC's, Armored Science and Technology College.
■ Compiled and Edited by: Hassan Yazdani, Mohammad Amin Shafiei.
■ Specialized Supervisor: Khosrow Koohmaraei.
■ Structural Editor: Mohammad Amin Shafiei.
■ Shiraz: Foundation for Preservation of Works and Publication of Sacred Defense Values, General Department for Preservation of Works and Publication of Sacred Defense Values of Fars Province, 2025. 124 pp.

One of the main hypotheses regarding the reason for the growth and expansion of oral history in the modern era relates to the fact that oral history is the best tool for addressing lesser-known topics of contemporary history. Topics that, particularly because little information is available about them, have received less attention. Relying on and accepting this hypothesis, oral history can be a suitable tool and method for entering the discussion of military historiography. Perhaps this is why addressing the history of the Sacred Defense (the eight-year Iran-Iraq war) using the oral history method and interviewing eyewitnesses has been met with good and widespread reception in the academic community, and relatively significant works have been published using this method.

As esteemed readers are aware, works published using the oral history method in Iran can be broadly categorized into two predominant types: individual and group works (we will not address other classifications here).

Individual interviews, as their name suggests, are interviews conducted with a single individual and are largely a form of "oral history interview in the format of a biography." Such interviews usually start from the individual's birth and continue through their education, political-cultural-social activities, professional life, and life story up to the present day, typically focusing within the framework and context that defines the interviewee's personality and position, and become known by that name.

The second category of interviews is conducted with a group of eyewitnesses who were witnesses, observers, commanders, or agents in a specific event or occurrence, or in a professional process. This group of works is usually published in two forms. In the first form, these interviews are arranged "sequentially" by topic and present a narrative of the event. In the second form, the compiler goes a step further and, in the role of a historian, engages in "oral historiography." In this case, the "oral historian" is not obligated to use all that has been gathered in the interviews. Instead, they categorize and classify the information obtained from the interviews, test them through internal and external criticism—evaluate and verify them, so to speak—and finally use them like their research notes (alongside other historiographical sources).

One of the strengths of the work lies precisely in the method the esteemed authors have adopted. An effort that promises a transition from publishing interviews (one-dimensional information) to oral historiography and a 360-degree examination of the subject. From this perspective, this book is among the few works published in military research centers using this method.

The appropriate use of photographs throughout the book, as well as their simultaneous use in the appendix, is another commendable action in this work.

Introducing the interviewees in the sources section (albeit very briefly) allows the reader to understand, to some extent, the relevance of the information provided with the interviewee's professional position, their perspective, and the timing of their encounter with the event.

With this introduction, let us take a look at the book "Oral History of 40 Years." To introduce and critique this book, it is better to examine it through the lenses of content, methodology, editing, and form.

From a Methodological Perspective

It seems this book can be categorized among works of "oral historiography" (as opposed to books that today constitute the predominant form in publishing oral history works and are essentially the publication of "oral history interviews").

One of the characteristics of oral history is the researcher's (interviewer's or oral historian's) use of active dialogue, which turns the interview into a conversation, dialogue, and two-way speech. This is unlike reminiscence, which is a monologue and has an individual, one-way nature. In this work, no trace of an interview is seen. In other words, one of the methodological features of the book is the authors' non-use of "direct quotation" in their book (although some phrases and sentences carry the suspicion of being direct quotations from the narrator). This has harmed the "orality" of the work. So much so that the only connection of the text with oral history (in any approach) is manifested through references to the narrator and the interview date. In other words, from this book, one cannot discern the boundary between reminiscence writing and active interview in the narrators' dialogues. Because the reader in no way and in no part receives any glimpse of an active interview (for example, through direct quotation).

The excessive conversion of direct quotations into indirect ones on the one hand, and the complete removal of questions on the other, has eliminated the connection between the work and its source, or more precisely, between the inquiring historian and the eyewitness (in the role of narrator).

Another methodological issue (which can be considered the main weakness of the work) is the authors' non-use of documents and evidence related to the subject. Apart from the use of visual documents (photographs) and reference to and borrowing from the "College's Photographic Album," there is no evidence indicating the use of available documents. For example, on page 21, the "Order for the Establishment of the Shiraz Armored Training Center" is mentioned, and on page 24, reference is made to a number of documents that could have been used in the book, as follows: "Following up on documents and maps of premises and facilities and construction credits...”

This has harmed the work from two perspectives. One from the perspective of comparing statements with documents, and the other from the perspective of completing information. It should not be forgotten that one of the functions of oral history interviews is to elucidate documents and evidence. Individuals present at the scene and at the time of document production add information that is not necessarily recorded in the documents (such as the reasons and methods of their preparation and production) to the document, and/or explain the document, and/or clarify ambiguities within it.

On the other hand, the existence of documents can provide the possibility of cross-referencing and comparing statements with documents (as "written evidence produced at the time of occurrence").

References to interviews also do not follow a uniform method, and the following examples are seen in the citations:

Sarkhili, 2021 (p.13)

Rajaei Interview, 2021 (p.49)

Pahlavan-Sharif, Interview, 2022 (p.70)

Yazdani, Interview; 2023 (p.83)

Yazdani, Interview; Sept-Oct 2021 (p.59)

Hassan Yazdani, Interview; Sept-Oct 2021 (p.58).

From a Content Perspective

The book "Oral History of 40 Years; A History of Armored Training of the IRGC's Armored Science and Technology College" is organized, after the preface, into three chapters and an appendix, with a list of sources placed at the end. Chapter one deals with "Armored Training Before 1983," Chapter Two is dedicated to introducing the Hamzeh Seyyed al-Shohada Armored Training Center in Shiraz, and Chapter Three introduces the Armored Science and Technology College.

The volume and type of information presented depict an image of the IRGC's efforts and activities to establish an armored unit and especially armored training within this institution. Although it seems that more and more precise information could have been provided in the book (such as the number and variety of internal courses held, the number of trainees in the courses, individuals effective in developing manuals and guides, training in combat), but well, the nature of military information, especially providing statistics, has sensitivities, limitations, and prohibitions that may have restricted the authors' hands in further elaboration, explanation, and description of the issue. However, mentioning the important activities of each college commander in some parts has turned the work into a performance report and added not-so-important or necessary information to the text. For example, the completion of "toilet facilities" (p.76), although its existence is necessary in any center, its presence in the book was perhaps not very necessary.

From an Editorial Perspective

Some slips are seen in the text which are unbecoming of this work.

The use of relatively long sentences has sometimes caused the verb and subject of the sentence to lack semantic affinity; or the tense of the main verb and auxiliary verb to be inconsistent; or the preposition used not to be appropriate for the verb. For example:

"He was able, while carrying out his mission ... to pay to the matter of training" (p.75). Instead of: "He was able, while carrying out his mission ... to engage in the matter of training."

"In the decade eighty and ninety" (p.77). Instead of: "In the decades of the eighties and nineties."

"To the provision of teaching aids .... readied" (p.77). Instead of: "Teaching aids .... were provided."

"From NAJA instructors such as .... Colonel Khaleghian, the lesson of defense was taken help from" (p.52). Instead of: "Help was taken from NAJA instructors such as .... Colonel Khaleghian for the defense lesson."

Spelling and writing errors are also seen in the work. Examples include: "holding of courses" (p.73; instead of: "holding courses"), "in the name of university" (p.74; instead of: "under the name of the university"), "human force" (p.76; instead of: "human resources"), "in Russia and China to after Russia..." (p.79; instead of: "in Russia and China, after Russia..."), "technology"/فن‌آوری / (e.g., on p.45; instead of the correct Persian form "fanavari"/فناوری/), "establishment" /تأسیس/ (written as "ta'sis", p.22), "class management" / کلاسداری / (written as "kelasdari", p.33), "college from" (p.124), "Hamzeh Seyyed Ashhada"/ حمزه سید اشهداء/ (caption for Photo No. 7).

Grammatical error (use of not-so-relevant prepositions, perhaps due to dialectal features) is also seen in at least the following two instances in the text:

"To stop from widespread advance" (p.7). Instead of: "To stop the widespread advance."

"Providing water first priority was" (p.24). Instead of: "Providing water was the first priority."

The use of "be" (preposition) in place of "ba"/با/ (in Persian) for emphasis or ornamentation is seen in the text. For example (in Persian): "bekargiri"/کارگیری/ (instead of "be-kargiri"/ به‌کارگیری/), "benazar"/بنظر/ (p.20), "besurat"/ بصورت / (p.29).

The use of "ye"/ی / instead of the Persian genitive is prevalent in the text.

The name of the city "Dorud"/ دورود / in Lorestan is written as "Dorood"/ درود/ (in Persian) on page 79.

Photographs placed within the text after photos numbered 47, 50, 51, 52, and 64 lack numbers and captions.

Three command levels?!! (p.38)

Redundancy and unjustified repetition; presumably, the items bolded in the examples below should have been deleted due to the parallelism with the underlined items.

"For years and years was able to supply and scientifically nourish the science and scientific capital required for armored training..." (p.43).

"Took action to create and provide the necessary infrastructure ... took action" (p.51).

"In order to complete armored training ... the need for a place outside the city necessary seemed" (p.53).

The lack of elucidation for names used in the text (even to the extent of completing the name) can be considered another weakness of the work. For example:
"Kazemizadeh, Cheshmi, and Shami" (p.16). Or in another case, two nearly similar names exist in the text, and a reader unfamiliar with the center cannot discern whether "Brother Guardsman Ali Izadi" (p.23) refers to "Alireza Izadi" or another individual.

From a Formal Perspective

The format and volume of the book are consistent and proportionate with the information presented and the subject under investigation. The authors have skillfully avoided verbosity, and on the other hand, have not taken economy of words to an extent that hinders the reader's familiarity with the subject under study.

The book lacks an index. The presence of an index is considered a kind of added value for retrieving the book's information.

In general, although the language of the text is fluent, it is not strong, and therefore, the book "Oral History of 40 Years; ..." with all its strengths (especially its pioneering role in "military oral historiography"), in addition to a structural editor, needs a punctuation and literary editor as well, so that in the next edition, the mentioned points (those that are deemed correct by the esteemed authors) can be revised, providing the possibility for more and better methodological utilization for other researchers of oral historiography topics.