The break-up of Communism in East Germany and Eastern Europe

the long version

This book presents a novel understanding of the break-up of communist hegemony in East Germany and Eastern Europe. Based on comparative case-studies, it argues that identity politics is a particular invention of communist rule, producing apolitical citizens. Focusing upon identity politics helps us to understand better the long-term stability of communist hegemony, its sudden collapse, the difficulties of transforming communist societies into liberal democracies and the unexpected revival of ethnic, nationalist and cultural conflicts in post-communist Eastern Europe.