Hill R.J. Soviet Union: Politics, Economics and Society From Lenin to Gorbachev

Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc., 1985. — 260 p. — ISBN: 0-931477-06-9; ISBN: 0-931477-07-7 — (Marxist Regimes Series)The significance of the coming of the communists to power in the Russian Empire in October 1917 can be measured on several scales. In the first place, it represented the radical transformation of one of the most reactionary regimes and structurally backward societies in Europe. Secondly, this revolution took place in the largest territorial state in the world, with what has now become the third largest population (after China and India). Thirdly, it illustrated the validity of certain theories of social change and organizational arrangement that had been advanced in the previous generations by radical thinkers of the Marxist and similar hues: it thus provides a historical model for subsequent political movements. Related to this point, the significance of the revolution's occurrence in Russia (rather than, say, Germany or France) not only calls into question some of the original Marxist assumptions about the development of a capitalist industrial society towards socialist revolution, but also has had a profound impact on the subsequent development of the communist movement.Basic Data
Glossary and List of AbbreviationsHistory and Political Traditions
Social Structures
The Political System
The Economic System
The Regime's PoliciesIndex 224