The French and Italian Communist Parties ─ Comrades and Culture

This book is a systematic comparative study of the French and Italian Communist Parties in the period from the early 1960s to the early 1980s. Unlike most studies of these parties, which usually adopt a macropolitical approach, this book focuses on the municipal level, through the careful examination of the cultural policies implemented by the parties in two communist strongholds, Ivry-sur-Seine (France) and Reggio Emilia (Italy).
Cyrille Guiat uses these two case studies to test empirically the hypothesis found almost universally in the comparative literature. That is, it is generally argued that the French Communist Party (PCF) remained an orthodox, sectarian Leninist party, which aimed at creating a Soviet-style society in France, whereas the former Italian Communist Party (PCI) is depicted as a more moderate party, which rejected the Soviet-style model after the Second World War and embarked on a new strategy, veering towards reformism and social democracy.
This makes an important contribution to the literature on the development of communism, and will be of much interest to students of political science and contemporary history, as well as European studies/language students.

Cyrille Guiat is lecturing in the School of Languages at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.