Eight essays connected by various common strands. The most important one is the community of the main subject-matter: socialism, capitalism, democracy, change of system. These four expressions cover four phenomena of great and comprehensive importance. Each piece in the book deals with these and the connections between them. One of the Leitmotifs is the “capitalism/socialism” pair of opposites. Capitalism has a history of several hundred years, while the socialist regime existed only for a few decades. But this pair of opposites was central to the history of the twentieth century. This antagonism put its stamp on political thinking, on the foreign policy and military preparedness of every country, and on some appallingly destructive armed conflicts. All these had great secondary influence on each country’s economic development and the standard of living and disposition of its inhabitants. None of the studies is confined to one country—not to Hungary or to any other. Each tries to embrace the problems common to greater units. However, the greater unit comprehended is not the same in each study. One may deal with the capitalist or socialist system in general, another will all the post-socialist countries, and a third the Central East European region. But all extend the analysis beyond the borders of one country.
- Cover
- Title page
- Copyright page
- Contents
- List of Tables and Figures
- Preface
- 1 The Coherence of the Classical System
- Introduction
- The Main Line of Causality
- The Affinity among Elements of the System
- The Prototype and the National Variations
- The Soviet Effect
- Verification
- The Viability of the Classical System
- 2 The Inner Contradictions of Reform Socialism
- Introduction
- Transformation without a Strategy
- The Evolution of a Private Sector
- The Persistence of Bureaucracy
- Alternative Forms of Social Organization
- The Weakness of “Third Forms”
- Normative Implications
- 3 Market Socialism? Socialist Market Economy?
- Introduction
- Interpretation of the Term “Market”
- Interpretation 1: Marx’s Concept
- Interpretation 2: The Walrasian Concept
- Interpretation 3: The Leninist Concept
- Interpretation 4: The Social Democratic Concept
- Interpretation 5: What are the Current Chinese and Vietnamese Interpretations of “Socialism”?
- 4 The Speed of Transformation
- Introduction
- Ownership Reform and Development of the Private Sector
- Macroeconomic Stability
- Conclusion
- 5 The Great Transformation of Central Eastern Europe:Success and Disappointment
- Introduction
- In the Context of World History
- From the Perspective of Everyday Life
- The Tasks of the Economists’ Profession
- 6 What Does “Change of System” Mean?
- Introduction
- Positive Versus Normative Approach
- A Positive Approach to the Change of System
- A Positive Approach to Changing the Political Structure
- The Reception of Capitalism and Democracy—A Normative Approach
- “Replacing the Elite” and “Dispensing Justice”—A Normative Approach
- Concluding Remarks
- Appendix: The Transformation of China
- 7 What Can Countries Embarking on Post-Socialist Transformation Learn from the Experiences So Far?
- Introduction
- Starting Points
- Some Lessons
- Concluding Remarks
- Appendix
- 8 The System Paradigm
- Introduction
- A System Paradigm, Not a Transformational Paradigm
- A Brief Intellectual History
- The Main Attributes of the System Paradigm
- Post-Socialist Transformation: The Great Challenge
- Some Other Puzzles
- Failures of Prediction
- Appendix: On the Segregation of the Social Sciences
- Previous Publications of the Studies in this Volume
- References
- Name Index
- Subject Index
- Back cover
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