Suchergebnisse

Dr. Wilder is a research analyst specializing in Eastern Europe for the United States Information Agency. Some interesting developments are occurring in Poland, but the general average is low. That there is a trend of any sort towards empirical research is in itself significant.

Stavrou reviews 'The Legacy of the Soviet Bloc' edited by Jane Shapiro Zacek and Ilpyong J. Kim.

The Soviet bloc is an international subsystem which has undergone substantial change since its inception, partly as a result of factors external to it and partly because of internal change. The actors in the subsystem are the Communist parties, which are the effective powerholders in the bloc countries. The party-regimes together constitute the subsystem. Within the subsystem there is one Great Power, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, which desires 'that other members recognize Soviet ideological and political primacy and emulate Soviet policies. Until Stalin's death this objective was mainly realized, thereafter there was increasing disharmony within the subsystem.

Four basic and meaningful trends are currently developing in the Sino-Soviet bloc. A most important trend is the emergence of diversity within Communist unity. Stalinism was characterized by political and ideological uniformity, centralization, and homogeneity. Today, a far more complicated pattern of relations prevails. A second trend, related to the first, is the weakening of ideological unity and the decline of ideological zeal within the Communist bloc. A third trend involves the energetic development of the economic and political integration of the Sino-Soviet bloc. The Soviet Union remains an autarchic economy. Otherwise, efforts are being made to develop specialization in the economic development and production of the various Communist countries. This division of labor contributes to greater interdependence. The Asian states, to date, are not part of this joint economic enterprise. The fourth trend is a general sense of historical momentum reinforced, on dubious intellectual grounds, by Soviet technological, especially space, advances. The West should avoid premature and rash actions of either a provocative or an unnecessarily compromising character. Beyond that, it is in the Western interest to promote stability among those Communist elites already inclined toward moderation and greater radicalism among those which are more militant.

Based on papers presented at the McMaster Conference on Slavic Nationalism, held at the McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Oct. 17-18, 1986. Retrospective of modern nationalism, with the focus on the 20th century; 8 articles. Contents are grouped under the headings: Language and literature; Politics, economics, and ethnic problems.