European Socialism: A Concise History with Documents - Couverture souple

Smaldone, William

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 1442209089 ISBN 13 : 9781442209084

Editeur : Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2013

Synopsis

This accessible text offers a concise but comprehensive introduction to European socialism, which arose in the maelstrom of the industrial and democratic revolutions launched in the eighteenth century. Striving for sweeping social, economic, cultural, and political change, socialists were a diverse lot. However, they were united by principles asserting the social and political equality of all people, ideas that won the adherence of millions and struck fear in the hearts of their numerous opponents. William Smaldone shows how, over the course of 200 years, socialists successfully promoted the democratization of European society and a more equitable division of wealth. At the same time, he illustrates how conflicts over the means of achieving their aims divided them into rival “socialist” and “communist” currents, a rift that undercut the struggle against fascism and helped lay the groundwork for Europe’s division during the Cold War. Although many predicted the demise of socialism as a potent force after the end of the Cold War, the Soviet Union’s dissolution, and the rise of neo-liberal ideology, recent developments show that such a judgment was premature. The author argues that the growth of new socialist parties across Europe indicates that socialist ideas remain vibrant in the face of capitalism’s failure to solve chronic social and economic problems, especially following the deep global crisis that began in 2008. Combining an analytical narrative with a selection of primary texts and visual images, this book provides undergraduate students with a brief, readable history, including an overview of how socialist political movements have evolved over time and stressing the rich diversity that has characterized socialism’s foundations from its beginning.

A propos du livre

À propos de l'auteur

William Smaldone is Professor of History at Willamette University. Professor Smaldone's research focuses on twentieth century German and European labor history. His Rudolf Hilferding: The Tragedy of a German Social Democrat (1998) examines the life of one of German Social Democracy's leading economic and political thinkers from the turn of the century until the collapse of the Weimar Republic in 1933. His second book, Confronting Hitler: German Social Democrats in Defense of the Weimar Republic, 1929-1933 (2009), treats the failure of Germany's Social Democratic leadership in its struggle against Adolf Hitler's National Socialist movement. In 2013 he published European Socialism: A Concise History. More recently, with Mark Blum of the University of Kentucky, Louisville, he has published Austro-Marxism: The Ideology of Unity, a two-volume collection of documents on one of twentieth century European socialism's most important intellectual currents. He is now translating and editing Rudolf Hilferding's correspondence with Karl Kautsky, Leon Trotsky, and Paul Hertz. William Smaldone teaches the following courses: HIST 116 - Western Civilization Since 1650 HIST 131 – The Rise of Capitalism HIST 131 – The Holocaust HIST 254 - Twentieth Century Europe HIST 255 - Cities and the Making of Modern Europe HIST 258 - Modern Latin America HIST 306 - History Through Biography HIST 343 – The Bolshevik Revolution HIST 372 - Modern Russia HIST 390 - Germany From Bismarck to Hitler HIST 391 - Germany since 1945 HIST 440 - History of European Socialism

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
• Date d'édition: 2013
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 1442209089
• ISBN 13: 9781442209084
• Reliure: Broché
• Nombre de pages: 364
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible