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With a foreword by Seymour Lipset, Hoover Institution and George Mason University, USA
The Fall examines one of the twentieth century's great historical puzzles: why did the communist-led regimes in Eastern Europe collapse so quickly and why was the process of collapse so different from country to country? This major study explains why the impetus for change in Poland and Hungary came from the regimes themselves, while in Czechoslovakia and East Germany it was mass movements which led to the downfall of the regimes.
List of contents
Part I - Theory 1. The Collapse 2.0 The Main Framework Part II - The Underlying Causes of the Collapse 3. The Economic Situation 4. Implementing Economic Reforms 5. The Rise of Gorbachev and the Fall of Legitimacy Part III - Differences in the Process of Collapse 6. Regime Policy Before 1988 7. Civil Society and the Degree of Liberalization 8. Social Movements Before 1988 9. Institutional Compromise 10. Non-violent Revolutions 11. Summary of the Model Epilogue - The Right Wing Shift after 1989
About the author
Steven Saxonberg
Summary
This major study examines the rapid collapse of the communist-led regimes in Eastern Europe by looking comparatively at the experiences of four different Eastern European regimes.
Additional text
'The Fall is highy original, synthesizing neo-institutionalism, Marxism, and political psychology. Saxonberg presents a highly ambitious and complex analysis of the downfall of communism in Eastern Europe that is well worth our reading' - Seymore Martin Lipset, George Mason University and The Hoover Institution, USA'Steven Saxonberg has provided us with a unique insight into the dynamics that led to the collapse of the four communist regimes in Central Europe ... The book is a must for anyone interested in democratic transitions' - Ole Norgaard, Aarhus University, DenmarkThis major work sheds new light on the events of 1989 and should replace several of the established and now much-dated texts. This book should become compulsory reading...'With logic, rigor, and great particularity, Saxonberg develops a model of the relationship of interests to politics that should provoke considerable debate in the years to come,' - David Ost, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, USAThe best comparative analysis of the collapse of Communism to date...[A] must read for anyone interested in Eastern Europe or comparative politics." "The best comparative analysis of the collapse of Communism to date...[A] must read for anyone interested in Eastern Europe or comparative politics.Steven Saxonberg has provided us with a unique insight into the dynamics that led to the collapse of the four communist regimes in Central Europe. ... The book is a must for anyone interested in democratic transitions."Saxonberg's study of the similarities and differences in the democratic transitions of the four communist regimes is equally guided by meticulous field research and by a strong analytical apparatus. His treatment of the legitimacy question is especially enlightening."
