The Art of Speaking and Writing

Numerous books and articles have been written about the life, works, and ideas of Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani (1853 or 1854 - 1896 CE), one of the most capable Iran-centered writers, a founding figure in the discourse of the Constitutional Revolution, and one of the most influential critics of religion and government in the nineteenth century. This book presents, for the first time in book form, a collection of his articles published in the Akhtar newspaper of Istanbul. During the period when Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani was among the contributors to Akhtar, a series of articles titled The Art of Speaking and Writing was published under his name in twelve issues. The first article appeared in Year Fifteen, Issue Thirty-Seven (22 Dhu al-Hijjah 1306 AH, corresponding to August 19, 1889 CE), and the last article was published in Year Sixteen, Issue Eleven (17 Rabi' al-Awwal 1307 AH, corresponding to November 11, 1889 CE). These articles serve as a valuable benchmark for understanding the intellectual development of Aqa Khan Kermani in the realm of literature, as they were written during the early years of his arrival in Istanbul.

M. Rezaei Tazik was born in July 1983 in Mashhad. He graduated with degrees in Political Science and Middle Eastern Studies from the Universities of Lucerne and Berne in Switzerland. His master's and doctoral studies focused on the history of intellectual thought in Iran, particularly the criticism of religion by Iranians. His doctoral dissertation examined religion and the criticism of religion in the works of Ahmad Kasravi. Additionally, Tazik has co-translated some of the works of FathAli Akhundzadeh and Mirza Agha Khan Kermani into German.