Left Transformed In Post-Communist Societies, The: Cases Of

Description:
One of the most unexpected outcomes of the Soviet bloc's transition out of communism is the divergent but important paths followed by once ruling communist parties. In The Left Transformed this ideological split into free market social democrats (Poland, Hungary, and Lithuania), anti-Western neo-Leninists (Russia and Ukraine), and doctrinal fence-sitters (the ex-communists of former East Germany) is explored through in-depth interviews, party presses and primary documents, and national election data. The careful examination of each party's transition as well as the most current information on organization, ideology, and electoral fortunes through late 2002 makes this book an invaluable resource for anyone interested in contemporary history, political parties, or comparative government in the former Soviet Empire.

Table of Contents:
Poland's ex-communists - from pariahs to establishment players, Jane Leftwich Curry; Hungary - socialists building capitalism, Diana Morlan; the left-wing parties in Lithuania, 1990-2002, Algis Krupavicius; political adaptation in Germany's post-communist party of democratic socialism, Thomas A. Baylis; the pragmatic radicalism of Russia's communists, Luke March; the communist party of Ukraine - from Soviet man to East Slavic brotherhood, Andrew Wilson; the post-communist left - divergent trajectories, shared legacies, Joan Barth Urban.