Socialism in Europe: After the Fall (original) (raw)
Related papers
Reassessing the Communist utopia? Eurocommunists at the mirror of "developed socialism"
History of Communism in Europe, 2011
Th is article tries to provide some food for thought on the identities of the PCI and the PCF about the developed socialism, taking into consideration some relevant turning points in the '70s and three diff erent case studies (the USSR, Czechoslovakia and Poland). Although it does not off er a complete analysis of Western Communist thinking on the image of developed socialism, it rather tries to reassess the common interpretation of some central features of the legacy of the developed socialism with respect to the two main Communist Parties of the Western bloc. Firstly, it argues that though many factors lay behind the strong tie between Western Communism and the Eastern communist states, the belief that developed socialism was reformable, mattered a great deal and, indeed, many leaders endorsed such a conviction. Th e Western leaders, and especially those of the Italian Communist Party, were arguably aware of the failures of developed socialism: particularly during the mid-'70s, pessimism grew and was decisive in the creation of Eurocommunism. Nevertheless, the important role played by the Soviet Union in détente, and the conviction that the contradictions of the developed socialism could be resolved if the new course of the 20th Congress were restored, proved central in defi ning the image of developed socialism for Western Communists. Secondarily, the paper argues that historiography makes much of the diff erences between the PCI and the PCF: the fi rst is usually considered more open, more democratic and capable of serious and genuine ideological evolution; while the latter is seen as a pro-Soviet Party, which used Eurocommunism as a tactic, and that lacked the capacity for autonomous thought. Th ough substantially agreeing on this distinction, more information is needed. We should stress that the thoughts of both Parties were based on the idea that a new political ruling class would have been able to change developed socialism.
The Evolution of the Consensus to European
The growing interest in the relationship between European integration process and political cultures can represent a new opportunity for the analysis of the socialist resistance against the construction of supranational scenarios in post World War II. The formation of a new transnational interdependence framework and the link between parties, masses and nation state could determine the refusal or the opening to European perspectives. For this, the paper brings out the meaningful features of a socialist thought that was the "world apart". This idea, in fact, contributed to the foundation and evolution of the liaison of the socialist community with nation state. In this sense, the differences between Lelio Basso and Giuseppe Faravelli, two socialist leaders of the postwar period, about the shape and function of the Italian socialist party seem to prefigure the historical perspective of this paradigm in the Italian democracy. It means the socialist construction of the approach to the liberal democracy, to the masses and to the idea of Europe.
Historical Research, 2017
Between 1948 and 1950 Comisco, the provisional Socialist International, and the British foreign office intervened in Italian politics to help the social democrats form a united party. The British Labour party came into conflict with the foreign office and the Dutch Labour party, as they disagreed over which Italian faction to support. The episode revealed the difference between the two parties' political cultures and strategic choices, particularly on the issue of coalition government with centrist parties. The narrative of the intervention is followed by an appraisal of its success, the obstacles which limited it, and its short-and long-term effects.
Past, Present and Future of Social Democracy: The Debate (?) in Italy and the Nordic Experience
2010
Category: Reflection on the economic crisis Written by Monica Quirico Does a debate on Social Democracy-its history, its present state, and its future perspectivesexist today in Italy? This is the very first question that one wonders about, when analysing the Italian contributions on such a political tradition, as they are few and not particularly innovative. Such a paucity can be explained by the weak "rootedness" of this political tradition in Italian history, due to the existence, until 1991, of a strong communist party (PCI), which identified in Democratic Socialism one of its main enemies. But what about the following developments of the communist party, which became first PDS, Democratic Party of the Left, then DS, Democrats of the Left[1], and finally PD, Democratic Party)? Was the leadership-who, in spite of all the changes in the party name, has remained more or less the same-moved by the fall of the Berlin wall to approach Democratic Socialism? Nordicum-Mediterraneum [nome.unak.is]
European Socialists and the State in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries
2020
Around the world, social movements have become legitimate, yet contested, actors in local, national and global politics and civil society, yet we still know relatively little about their longer histories and the trajectories of their development. This series seeks to promote innovative historical research on the history of social movements in the modern period since around 1750. We bring together conceptually-informed studies that analyse labour movements, new social movements and other forms of protest from early modernity to the present. We conceive of 'social movements' in the broadest possible sense, encompassing social formations that lie between formal organisations and mere protest events. We also offer a home for studies that systematically explore the political, social, economic and cultural conditions in which social movements can emerge. We are especially interested in transnational and global perspectives on the history of social movements, and in studies that engage critically and creatively with political, social and sociological theories in order to make historically grounded arguments about social movements. This new series seeks to offer innovative historical work on social movements, while also helping to historicise the concept of 'social movement'. It hopes to revitalise the conversation between historians and historical sociologists in analysing what Charles Tilly has called the 'dynamics of contention'.
‘Eurocommunism’ has been framed in the scholarship as a shift in tactics, alliances and program within the International Communist Movement in the 1970s as a result of a relative distancing of a number of (mainly Western-European) CPs and the Soviet Union. Central to it was the question of a proper strategy for socialist transition in advanced capitalist countries and the role of democracy as its main lever and enabler. Though a phenomenon reaching as far as Japan and Mexico, studies have mostly concentrated on the parties at the ‘Eurocommunist’ epicenter (the Italian, French and Spanish CPs). This paper aims to examine the ‘Eurocommunist’ debate on power and socialism proposing a global scope and renewed perspective on its drivers and features. It will argue that ‘Eurocommunism’ finds a key inspiration outside Europe altogether, namely, in the rise and fall of Allende’s Popular Unity government in Chile; furthermore, that the global economic crisis of 1973 – not Cold War politics – forms the decisive backdrop for its emergence; this means that, while no doubt a byproduct of the events of 1968 in Prague and the search for more autonomy by (most) Western European CPs regarding the Soviet Union, ‘Eurocommunism’ is at bottom a phenomenon rooted in the capitalist ‘West’ and the period of sea change the 1973 crisis - coupled with anti-colonial and anti-dictatorial struggles around the globe – inaugurated. ‘Eurocommunist’ CPs ultimately failed to capitalize from this conjuncture in Europe in part due to assumptions regarding the role of state power and the possibilities of effecting social change in capitalist democracies that proved misleading. Yet, the paper concludes by suggesting that ‘Eurocommunism’ had an afterlife in other parts of the world even as European CPs faced strong decline; this will be illustrated with the case of Brazil’s Workers’ Party, which, though neither European nor Communist, perhaps best embodied – and carried forth – the ‘Eurocommunist’ take on socialism and power in the 1980s.
The Death of Social Democracy: The Case of the Italian Democratic Party
Bulletin of Italian Politics, 2009
This article tries to explain why Italy is the only Western European country where a social democratic party no longer exists. It will be argued that the historical weakness of the socialist tradition, due to the peculiarities of the Italian party system, prevented the emergence of a strong social-democratic alternative to the Christiandemocratic government during the First Republic. Moreover, the attempt to create a modern socialist party after the collapse of the PCI and PSI completely failed. So far the new Democratic Party has not been able to broaden the support for the centre left and still lacks a defined identity. This perhaps demonstrates that it is still difficult to build a valid centre-left alternative to social democracy in Europe. The Italian case, however, cannot just be dismissed as an anomaly. In fact, it well represents a general crisis of the European moderate left. The debate that is taking place in France shows that other traditionally weak socialist parties might follow the Italian example.