Pushed Over the Edge

Abstract

In her 1979 book, States and Social Revolutions, Theda Skocpol observed that social revolutions occur when a corrupt ancien régime experiences an economic downturn, setting in motion widespread popular discontent. The Russian Revolution of 1917, like the French Revolution of 1789, was abetted by the breakdown of the imperial order, in both cases leading to a reign of terror. Other social revolutions, such as Roosevelt’s New Deal, have been less terrifying although similarly leading to a gnashing of teeth among those who lost power, status, and influence.