Explaining the bases of convergence and divergence of parties and its role in the formation and failure of social movements

The study of social changes in Iran in the last hundred years shows structural changes in the field of politics, especially the role of political parties and elite groups. The present study seeks to explain the contexts and consequences of the convergence-divergence of two national and religious political groups in the formation of the movement to nationalize the oil industry and ultimately the failure of the movement (during the coup of August 11). For this purpose, a combination of dialectical and functional perspectives on conflict has been selected as the theoretical framework of the study. The present study is qualitative research and the case study strategy has been used. The results of the research show that the convergence of political parties during the national movement was not based on the efforts and group actions of the elites and Iranian political movements, but rather began in the conditions of occupation and weakening of power in the country. The convergences of the elites, especially Mossadegh and Kashani, were not a deep-rooted strategy, but rather a tactic. If the coup of August 11 had not occurred, it was not clear how long these convergences would have continued with these divergent ideas. Therefore, the existence of a deep-rooted strategy among the political elites for convergence, the existence of a tolerant spirit among them, and also the avoidance of authoritarian behaviors, especially in a society that has undergone rapid changes, could have prevented the repetition of the sad tragedy of convergence-divergence, a tragedy that the elites have always helped to reproduce by simultaneously requesting the paradoxical components of freedom-seeking and authoritarianism.