Stalinism and the Dialectics of Saturn: Anticommunism, Marxism, and the Fate of the Soviet Union

by Douglas Greene, Harrison Fluss (Foreword)

This study examines the complicated legacy of Stalinism in the twentieth century. The descent of the Russian Revolution into Stalinism has given rise to an oft-accepted truism that revolutions are like Saturn and will devour their own children. For anticommunists, Stalinism is condemned as a “bolt from blue,” whether an insidious contagion, Big Brother, or totalitarian reason that socialism cannot escape from. On the other end, Communists and their fellow-travelers have seen Stalinism as a force of historical necessity and the only way for the working class to reach a communist society. Both these twin camps accept a Dialectic of Saturn where Stalinism, whether for evil or good, is the preordained fate of all socialist revolutions. However, there is another position that views Stalinism as the product of material circumstance and class struggle. This position was represented by Leon Trotsky in his seminal work The Revolution Betrayed. In contrast to those who accept a mystical dialectic of Saturn, Trotsky argued that Stalinism can be rationally explained and was not inevitable outcome of socialism.

384 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 20, 2023

Reviews

[Nathaniel Flakin · Rating 5 out of 5]

How lucky am I? The sixtieth #book I finished in 2022 was an advanced copy of Doug Greene's new book. It will be published on March 25, 2023, and I think you should get a copy. Here's the blurb I wrote for it:


"Any serious socialist today needs a balance sheet of Stalinism. Was it an inevitable result of socialist revolution? This book offers a broad overview of leftist debates about the character of the Soviet Union under Stalin, covering fellow travelers, anticommunists, and Western Marxists. In this intellectual tour de force, Doug Greene shows that Stalinism was not historically necessary. Communist alternatives were possible. Perhaps because he works without any academic affiliation, Greene presents complex theoretical debates in refreshingly simple language. Read this to understand how Stalinism can be thrown onto the dustbin of history, and socialism can be built." #bookstagram