The Gorbachev Phenomenon: A Historical Interpretation

Glasnost under Gorbachev has its roots in Khrushchev's de-Stalinization and Kosygin's attempted economic reforms, notes Lewin, professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania. He contrasts the agrarian despotism that Lenin and Stalin presided over with today's highly industrialized society in which well-educated urban citizens are dominant. Soviet mass media cannot brainwash the individual, Lewin asserts, because a maze of interpersonal relations and informal groups serve as a shield against indoctrination. Themes like personal autonomy and individuality have filtered into public discourse. In an instructive and highly readable analysis, Lewin pinpoints Gorbachev's main strength as his awareness that all parts of the systemsociety, party, state, economymust be reformed simultaneously. (March)