The Waning of the communist state: economic origins of political decline in China and Hungary

These essays offer an explanation for the decline of communism in the two countries that went the furthest with economic reforms - China and Hungary. The book illuminates a quiet revolution from within that beset the two regimes after they chose to reform their economies and make concessions to the private sector. The book's nine contributors, three each from the disciplines of sociology, political science and anthropology, examine key trends that appeared in both countries. The chapters trace political consequences of economic reform that range from the decline of the central state's fiscal dominance to the revitalization of long-suppressed ethnic loyalties.