This book examines the history of the Hungarian working class from 1939 to the present. The essays were originally published separately and later gathered into this volume as a tribute after Pittaway’s death in 2010
The book is dedicated to the work of the late British historian, Dr Mark Pittaway (1971-2010), a prominent scholar of post-war and contemporary Central and Eastern Europe (CEE).
Breaking with orthodox readings on Eastern bloc regimes, which remain wedded to the 'totalitarianism' paradigm of the Cold War era, the essays in this volume shed light on the contradictory historical and social trajectory of 'real socialism' in the region.
Mainstream historiography has presented Stalinist parties as 'omnipotent', effectively stripping workers and society in general of its 'relative autonomy'. Building on an impressive amount of archive material, Pittaway convincingly shows how dynamics of class, gender, skill level, and rural versus urban location, shaped politics in the period.
Historians consider Pittaway influential because he humanised the history of Eastern European socialism by focusing on everyday workers rather than only leaders or ideology.
