Description
Book SynopsisThis volume offers a thorough empirical analysis of the experiences of the left-wing parties in post-communist states and assesses their prospects for the future.
The volume examines the fortunes of the political left in selected post-communist countries: Russia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Slovenia and Romania. Regardless of their individual experiences, they all face similar challenges relating to their authoritarian past. These challenges include building a civil society and combating an under-developed party system and a mercurial electorate, combined with the political and social pressures associated with the transformation to a market economy. Six country studies all address how the left-wing parties have returned to the political stage and discuss their prospects for the future. The volume finds that the left has been a resilient, and generally underestimated, force in post-communist states aided by a unique combination of history, geography, commerce and social/cultural values.
This book will be of interest to students and scholars as well as policy practitioners with responsibility for post-communist regions.
Table of ContentsContents: Preface: Defining the Left 1. The Return of the Left: Causes and Consequences 2. The Russian Left in Transition 3. Lithuania Beyond the Return of the Left 4. Left Politics in Post-communist Hungary 5. Young, Westernized, Moderate: The Polish Left after Communism 6. The Left in Slovenia 7. From Red Star to Roses: The Left in Post-communist Romania 8. Understanding the Left and Its Future Index
