Destruction and order
A brief, comparative sociology of the Russian Revolution
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
The Russian Revolution was a global event. It served as a justification for anti-democratic counter-revolutions and marked the beginning of a new type of political regime : single party dictatorship. It started a period of organised violence unprecedented in the history of mankind, brought the disintegration of a major empire to its conclusion and led to the establishment of the Soviet Union, which had a decisive impact on international relations during the 20th century. An analysis of the causes, progress and consequences of the October Revolution using the methods of comparative historical sociology leads to important insights for a general theory of inhibited and accelerated social change.
(Osteuropa 6-8/2017, pp. 65–89)