Revolution with a Human Face: Politics, Culture, and Community in Czechoslovakia, 1989-1992

by James Krapfl

Overview

In this social and cultural history of Czechoslovakia’s "gentle revolution," James Krapfl shifts the focus away from elites to ordinary citizens who endeavored—from the outbreak of revolution in 1989 to the demise of the Czechoslovak federation in 1992—to establish a new, democratic political culture. Unique in its balanced coverage of developments in both Czech and Slovak lands, including the Hungarian minority of southern Slovakia, this book looks beyond Prague and Bratislava to collective action in small towns, provincial factories, and collective farms.

Through his broad and deep analysis of workers’ declarations, student bulletins, newspapers, film footage, and the proceedings of local administrative bodies, Krapfl contends that Czechoslovaks rejected Communism not because it was socialist, but because it was arbitrarily bureaucratic and inhumane. The restoration of a basic "humanness"—in politics and in daily relations among citizens—was the central goal of the revolution. In the strikes and demonstrations that began in the last weeks of 1989, Krapfl argues, citizens forged new symbols and a new symbolic system to reflect the humane, democratic, and nonviolent community they sought to create. Tracing the course of the revolution from early, idealistic euphoria through turns to radicalism and ultimately subversive reaction, Revolution with a Human Face finds in Czechoslovakia’s experiences lessons of both inspiration and caution for people in other countries striving to democratize their governments.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780801469411
Publisher:	Cornell University Press
Publication date:	10/15/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	292
File size:	3 MB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

James Krapfl is Assistant Professor of History at McGill University.

Table of Contents

Introduction1. The Rhetoric of Revolution2. The Big Bang of the Signifiers3. The Ideals of November4. The Boundaries of Community5. Power in the Streets6. The Will of the PeopleConclusionChronology
Bibliography
Index

What People are Saying About This

Hugh L. Agnew

Revolution with a Human Face is imaginative, original, and thoroughly grounded on a truly admirable range and scope of primary documents. James Krapfl succeeds in moving his exploration of the 1989 revolution in Czechoslovakia out of the capitals and away from the elite intellectuals, politicians, and dissidents who dominate most accounts of the events. His approach from the bottom up will force us to rethink how we understand what actually happened in the 'Velvet Revolution,' and after.

Carol Skalnik Leff

The innovative and compelling Revolution with a Human Face is original both in conception and source material and is likely to be an instant classic. James Krapfl reconstructs the day-to-day evolution of thinking about regime change at the grassroots level. He draws on a massive and intensive search of the documentary ephemera of the revolutionary period to 'get out of Prague.' This allows him to trace the countrywide mobilization in support of the Velvet/Gentle Revolution that led to the collapse of communism in Czechoslovakia in 1989.

Michal Pullmann

In this fascinating account of Czechoslovakia's 'Gentle Revolution,’ James Krapfl brings the people to the fore. He mobilizes powerful evidence to illuminate their ideals and fears, their hopes and expectations, their willingness to negotiate and to sacrifice, and finally their disappointments and conflicts. This lucid study enhances our understanding of the transformations of civic political culture that took place in Czechoslovakia from November 1989 until the dissolution of the federation.

Editorial Reviews

In this engaging book James Krapfl argues persuasively that average Czechoslovak citizens have been neglected in Western studies of the revolutionary events of 1989, with analysis of the writings and dissident intellectuals in Prague having been considered representative of the ideas and values of the revolution in all of Czechoslovakia. Krapfl proposes that the motivations for protests in 1989 were not geographically uniform and thus he aims to look closely at how the momentous events were experienced outside the capitals of Prague and Bratislava in towns and villages across the country, using archival material from a broad base of different localities.

New Zealand Slavonic Journal - Geoffrey Brown

Krapfl's research is supported by extensive analysis of documents from the citizens’ associations that began forming in each region immediately following November 17. He conducted research not only in the larger state archives but also in more than two dozen regional archives throughout the Czech Republic and Slovakia.... The monograph presents a systematic analysis of these materials that offers a previously unseen picture of how Czechoslovak citizens engaged in the revolution. His findings are extremely interesting, illustrating the local nature and diverse concerns of citizens in each town and region and capturing the idealism of participants.... Revolution with a Human Face is recommended for regional specialists and scholars of social movements and revolutionary periods as well as graduate and upper-division undergraduates studying this history.

Slavic Review - David Doellinger

I read Krapfl's book with excitement andadmiration. Revolution with a Human Face is an excellent work, the type which launches further research. Krapfl has radically changed how we must thinkabout the Czechoslovak revolution of 1989 by placing the people at its heart.He has further cast into relief the character of revolutionary processes and hasfound worthy insight therein into the dissolution of Czechoslovakia.

East Central Europe - Jacob Ari Labendz

In this study of Czechoslovakia's gentle revolution of 1989 (to use the originally applied phrase)Krapfl (McGill Univ.Canada) seeks to focus upon the experiences of ordinary citizens rather than political elites. He uses an impressively large range of documents along with the products of an unregulated press to present a narrative and analysis that is week by weeksometimes day by dayfor the months between November 1989 and the end of the Czechoslovak federation in 1992.... Krapfl is especially good at showing developments in all regions of the country and in provincial townsfactoriesand farms. He also shows how difficult it is to democratize government and how events lead to unintended consequences. A helpful chronology of events enables one to trace the welter of detail in this period.

Choice - P.W. Knoll

"The innovative and compelling Revolution with a Human Face is original both in conception and source material and is likely to be an instant classic. James Krapfl reconstructs the day-to-day evolution of thinking about regime change at the grassroots level. He draws on a massive and intensive search of the documentary ephemera of the revolutionary period to 'get out of Prague.' This allows him to trace the countrywide mobilization in support of the Velvet/Gentle Revolution that led to the collapse of communism in Czechoslovakia in 1989."

Carol Skalnik Leff

"In this fascinating account of Czechoslovakia's 'Gentle Revolution,’ James Krapfl brings the people to the fore. He mobilizes powerful evidence to illuminate their ideals and fears, their hopes and expectations, their willingness to negotiate and to sacrifice, and finally their disappointments and conflicts. This lucid study enhances our understanding of the transformations of civic political culture that took place in Czechoslovakia from November 1989 until the dissolution of the federation."

Michal Pullmann

"Revolution with a Human Face is imaginative, original, and thoroughly grounded on a truly admirable range and scope of primary documents. James Krapfl succeeds in moving his exploration of the 1989 revolution in Czechoslovakia out of the capitals and away from the elite intellectuals, politicians, and dissidents who dominate most accounts of the events. His approach from the bottom up will force us to rethink how we understand what actually happened in the 'Velvet Revolution,' and after."

Hugh L. Agnew

"In this study of Czechoslovakia's "gentle revolution" of 1989 (to use the originally applied phrase), Krapfl (McGill Univ., Canada) seeks to "focus upon the experiences of ordinary citizens rather than political elites." He uses an impressively large range of documents along with the products of an unregulated press to present a narrative and analysis that is week by week, sometimes day by day, for the months between November 1989 and the end of the Czechoslovak federation in 1992. . . . Krapfl is especially good at showing developments in all regions of the country and in provincial towns, factories, and farms. He also shows how difficult it is to democratize government and how events lead to unintended consequences. A helpful chronology of events enables one to trace the welter of detail in this period." –P.W. Knoll, Choice (April 2014)

"In this engaging book James Krapfl argues persuasively that average Czechoslovak citizens have been neglected in Western studies of the revolutionary events of 1989, with analysis of the writings and dissident intellectuals in Prague having been considered representative of the ideas and values of the revolution in all of Czechoslovakia. Krapfl proposes that the motivations for protests in 1989 were not geographically uniform and thus he aims to look closely at how the momentous events were experienced outside the capitals of Prague and Bratislava in towns and villages across the country, using archival material from a broad base of different localities."—Geoffrey Brown, New Zealand Slavonic Journal (2012)

"Krapfl's research is supported by extensive analysis of documents from the citizens’ associations that began forming in each region immediately following November 17. He conducted research not only in the larger state archives but also in more than two dozen regional archives throughout the Czech Republic and Slovakia. . . . The monograph presents a systematic analysis of these materials that offers a previously unseen picture of how Czechoslovak citizens engaged in the revolution. His findings are extremely interesting, illustrating the local nature and diverse concerns of citizens in each town and region and capturing the idealism of participants. . . . Revolution with a Human Face is recommended for regional specialists and scholars of social movements and revolutionary periods as well as graduate and upper-division undergraduates studying this history."—David Doellinger, Slavic Review (Winter 2014)

"I read Krapfl's book with excitement andadmiration. Revolution with a Human Face is an excellent work, the type which launches further research. Krapfl has radically changed how we must thinkabout the Czechoslovak revolution of 1989 by placing the people at its heart.He has further cast into relief the character of revolutionary processes and hasfound worthy insight therein into the dissolution of Czechoslovakia."—Jacob Ari Labendz, East Central Europe (Aug 2015)

"Revolution with a Human Face is imaginative, original, and thoroughly grounded on a truly admirable range and scope of primary documents. James Krapfl succeeds in moving his exploration of the 1989 revolution in Czechoslovakia out of the capitals and away from the elite intellectuals, politicians, and dissidents who dominate most accounts of the events. His approach from the bottom up will force us to rethink how we understand what actually happened in the 'Velvet Revolution,' and after."—Hugh L. Agnew, The George Washington University, author of The Czechs and the Lands of the Bohemian Crown

"In this fascinating account of Czechoslovakia's 'Gentle Revolution,’ James Krapfl brings the people to the fore. He mobilizes powerful evidence to illuminate their ideals and fears, their hopes and expectations, their willingness to negotiate and to sacrifice, and finally their disappointments and conflicts. This lucid study enhances our understanding of the transformations of civic political culture that took place in Czechoslovakia from November 1989 until the dissolution of the federation."—Michal Pullmann, Charles University Prague

"The innovative and compelling Revolution with a Human Face is original both in conception and source material and is likely to be an instant classic. James Krapfl reconstructs the day-to-day evolution of thinking about regime change at the grassroots level. He draws on a massive and intensive search of the documentary ephemera of the revolutionary period to 'get out of Prague.' This allows him to trace the countrywide mobilization in support of the Velvet/Gentle Revolution that led to the collapse of communism in Czechoslovakia in 1989."—Carol Skalnik Leff, University of Illinois, author of Elite Transformation in Post-Communist Europe

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