Stalinism Revisited: The Establishment of Communist Regimes in East-Central Europe and the Dynamics of the Soviet Bloc

by Vladimir Tismaneanu (Editor)

Overview

Deals with the period of takeover and of ‘high Stalinism’ in Eastern Europe (1945–1955). These years are considered to be fundamentally characterized by institutional and ideological transfers based upon the premise of radical transformism and of cultural revolution. Both a balance-sheet and a politico-historical synthesis that reflects the archival and thematic novelties which came about in the field of communism studies after 1989.

Contains contributions analyzing various aspects related these topics for each country of the former Soviet bloc (with the exception of Albania). The essays are based on new archival research, some are reassessments of the author’s previous research and others are critical appraisals of the specific literature published on issues related to the main topic. A path-breaking comparative framework for interpreting the relationship between late Stalinism and the communist takeovers in former Eastern Europe. A bonus for the volume is that it also provides detailed, sectorial analyses for the Romanian case, something that the field paritcularly lacks.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9789639776555
Publisher:	Central European University Press
Publication date:	11/28/2009
Pages:	452
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.30(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Vladimir Tismaneanu is Professor of politics and Director of the Center for the Study of Post-communist Societies at University of Maryland (College Park).

Table of Contents

Introduction by Vladimir Tismaneanu 

Part One : Stalinism Revisited and the Takeover Model

Stalinist Revolutionary Breakthroughs in Eastern Europe (Kenneth Jowitt)

Diabolical Pedagogy and the (Il)logic of Stalinism in Eastern Europe (Vladimir Tismaneanu)

Stalin, Soviet Policy, and the Consolidation of a Communist Bloc in Eastern Europe, 1944–1953 (Mark Kramer)

Popular Democracy: an Illusion? (Alfred J. Rieber)

Part Two : The Establishment of Communist Regimes 

Eastern Europe between the USSR and the West: Reflections on the Origins and Dynamics of the Cold War (Thomas W. Simons, Jr)

Legitimation deficit and legitimation crisis in East European societies (Agnes Heller)

The Paradox of East German Communism: From Non-Stalinism to Neo-Stalinism? (John Connelly)

Road to "People’s Poland:" Stalin’s Conquest Revisited (Antoni Z. Kaminski, Bartlomiej Kaminski)

Part Three : Stalinism and Historiography 

Revisiting Hungarian Stalinism (Janos Rainer)

Avatars of the Romanian Academy and the Historical Front (1948 versus1955) (Bogdan Cristian Iacob)

Bulgarian Stalinism Revisited (Ekaterina Nikova)

Historicizing a Disputed Theme: Anticommunist Armed Resistance in Romania (Dorin Dobrincu)

Part Four : National or Revolutionary Breakthroughs? 

Hope Died Last: The Czechoslovak Road to Stalinism (Bradley Abrams)

Propaganda and Culture in Romania at the Beginning of the Communist Regime (Cristian Vasile)

Varieties of Stalinism in Light of the Yugoslav Case (Svetozar Stojanovic)

Community Building and Identity Politics in Gheorghiu-Dej’s Romania (1956–1964) (Dragoş Petrescu)

List of Contributors

Index

Editorial Reviews

Stalinism Revisited brings together representatives of multiple generations to create a rich examination of the study and practice of Stalinism. While the articles are uniformly excellent, the book’s signal contribution is to bring recent research from Eastern European scholars to an English-speaking audience. Thus the volume is not just a "state of the discipline" collection, in which articles are collected to reflect that current situation of scholarship in a given field; instead, this one includes cutting edge scholarship that will prompt more of the same from other scholars in other fields/subfields. I would recommend this book highly to anyone interested in understanding the technology of Stalinism in both thought and practice.

—Nick Miller

The Sovietization of post-1945 East-Central Europe—marked by the forceful imposition of the Soviet-type society in the region—was a process of massive socio-political and cultural transformation. Despite its paramount importance for understanding the nature of the communist regime and its legacy, the communist take-over in East Central European countries has remained largely under-researched. Two decades after the collapse of the communist system, Stalinism Revisited brings together a remarkable international team of established and younger scholars, engaging them in a critical re-evaluation of the institutionalization of communist regimes in East-Central Europe and of the period of "high Stalinism." Sovietization is approached not as a fully pre-determined, homogeneous, and monolithic transformation, but as a set of trans-national, multifaceted, and inter-related processes of large-scale institutional and ideological transfers, made up of multiple "takeovers" in various fields. Theoretically minded and empirically sound, the collection adds key elements to our comparative understanding of Stalinist regimes in their various historical permutations. The richness of the source material employed and its comparative scope makes Stalinism Revisited a major, synthetic contribution to the study of East-Central Europe’s Sovietization.

—Constantin Iordachi

From the Publisher