Synopses & Reviews
This study examines the development of Marxist-Leninist ideology in the U.S.S.R. from its origins to the collapse of the Soviet regime. Alfred Evans argues that Soviet Marxism-Leninism was subject to significant adaptation under various leaders, contrary to the widespread impression that official Soviet ideology remained static after Stalin. While taking account of scholarly literature on each of the periods covered, the work is significant for being based principally on an analysis of primary (Soviet) sources. Evans' integrated analysis of changes in ideology during the post-Stalin decades is an important contribution to the literature in political science, political economy, and Soviet studies.
Synopsis
Alfred Evans presents the first integrated analysis of Soviet Marxist-Leninist ideology from the founding of the U.S.S.R. to its recent collapse.
About the Author
ALFRED B. EVANS, JR. is Professor of Political Science at California State University, Fresno.
Table of Contents
Marx and the Stages of Communism
Lenin on Socialist Construction
The Consolidation of Stalinism
Mature Stalinism: Continuity Within Transition
Khrushchev: The Full-Scale Construction of Communism
Khrushchev: Social and Political Change
Brezhnev: The Stage of Developed Socialism
Social Structure and Social Transformation in Developed Socialism
The Socialist Way of Life
Gorbachev on Stagnation and Restructuring
The Hope of Reform: Socialist Pluralism
The Collapse of the Dream
Conclusion: The Revenge of Politics
Bibliography