Intellectuals and the French Communist Party

Abstract

Examining the emergence and subsequent demise of intellectual identification with the French Communist Party between 1945 and 1989, this book argues that, after 1978, political conflicts between the Communist leadership and party intellectuals led to an erosion of support. These conflicts were sharpened by the party's institutional decline during the 1980s. The author links these internal factors with wider ideological changes during the 1970s and 1980s: the decreasing relevance of class-based politics, the explosion of the myth of radical change, the reconsideration of the goals of political commitment, and, finally, the rejection of the Soviet model. All these factors contributed significantly to an altered political climate. Based on a critical examination of the available literature, in both French and English, this systematic exploration of the role of intellectuals in French politics also explains why this social group has been so prominent in public life throughout the modern era.