Alienating Labour: Workers on the Road from Socialism to Capitalism in East Germany and Hungary

The Communist Party dictatorships in Hungary and East Germany promised to provide for ever-increasing levels of consumption, shifting working-class political consciousness to the right and excluding leftist alternatives from the public sphere. This policy can provide insights into the collapse of these regimes.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 372 pages
Publication date: 13 October 2023
Publisher: Berghahn Books

The Communist Party dictatorships in Hungary and East Germany embarked on a strategy to captivate the "masses" by making grand promises of an ever-expanding realm of consumerism. Initially, this approach seemed to yield positive results, as it successfully garnered support from the working class. However, over time, this policy proved to be detrimental to the regimes, as it shifted the political consciousness of the working class to the right, effectively marginalizing leftist alternatives in the public discourse. This book makes a compelling argument that by examining the case studies of two significant factories, Carl Zeiss Jena in East Germany and Rába in Győr in Hungary, we can gain valuable insights into the collapse of these regimes. By delving into the formation of the relationship between the workers' state and the industrial working class, this book offers a profound exploration of the crucial issue of the legitimacy (and eventual loss) of Communist regimes.

The Communist Party dictatorships in Hungary and East Germany sought to win over the "masses" with promises of providing for ever-increasing levels of consumption. This policy—successful at the outset—in the long-term proved to be detrimental for the regimes because it shifted working class political consciousness to the right while it effectively excluded leftist alternatives from the public sphere. This book argues that this policy can provide the key to understanding of the collapse of the regimes. It examines the case studies of two large factories, Carl Zeiss Jena (East Germany) and Rába in Győr (Hungary), and demonstrates how the study of the formation of the relationship between the workers' state and the industrial working class can offer illuminating insights into the important issue of the legitimacy (and its eventual loss) of Communist regimes.

Weight: 546g
Dimension: 152 x 229 x 24 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781805391241