How the Culture of Eastern Europe Affected the Rise and Development of communism
As a philosophy for the masses, Karl Marx, combined the essential components of both socialism and nationalism to create an ideology that would aid in shaping the latter part of the Twentieth Century: Communism. Many facets of a country's political culture combine to compose the overall environment of a country. The manipulation of these components is how communists were able to develop and dominant within these countries. There are three countries that represent the extreme spectrum of the communist takeover: Bulgaria, with its historic ties to Russia, Poland, with Russia as its traditional adversary, and Yugoslavia, which developed communism completely independent of Russia and did not bend to Moscow's rule. While communism too different paths to get established, each nation felt a desire for change and a feeling of despair and failure with Western political ideology. These sentiments were evident in the different sectors of the culture during the development, establishment, and domination of the communist party. The elements most important for communist rule are the tensions between the majority ethnicity and the multiplicity of ethnic minorities, the focus of individuality versus communalism and the economic status of the country at the end of WWII versus the initial performance of the communist governments. Other factors include the development, actions, and platform of the communist party, the relationship of the communist party with the Soviet Union, and the use of the military in the communist takeover. although these differed in each country, the outcome was the same by 1948: communist rule. ; A Thesis submitted to the Department of History in partial fulfillment of the requirements for graduation with Honors in the Major. ; Spring Semester, 2011. ; April 18, 2011.
