Libmonster ID: UK-1559
Author(s) of the publication: N. I. EGOROVA

Stewart C. EASTON. World History since 1945. San Francisco. "Chandler Publisher Company". 1968. XXI + 1087 p.

American bourgeois historiography attaches particular importance to interpreting the problems of modernity in a light that is favorable to imperialism. This, in particular, is evidenced by the appearance of a number of "world histories" of our era. 1 American bourgeois historians, lagging behind their European counterparts in developing concepts of world history (primarily due to the long-standing influence of the doctrine of "American exceptionalism"), turned to these theories after World War II, mainly to justify the claims of American imperialists to world domination. Bourgeois historiography was influenced by the transformation of socialism into a world system, the rise of the national liberation movement, and the entry of many former colonial peoples into the international arena in the post - war decades. In the face of these facts, which testify to the doom of capitalism, bourgeois historians seek to impose on humanity their own imperialist alternative to the development of the world.

The book under review belongs to this type of publication. Its author is S. Easton, who switched from teaching to research at the American Historical Association and the Academy of Political Science in 1962, is known for several books that focus heavily on the post-war period .2 However, only in a peer-reviewed paper describing the events from 1945 to June 1967 (relative to the Middle East).

1 R. Z. Heilbroner. Future as History. N. Y. 1960; S. H. Zebel and S. Schwartz. Past to Present. A World History. N. Y. 1960; H. Spall. World since 1945. Toronto. 1960; A. E. R. Boak and oth. The History of Our World. Boston. 1963; G. Peck and R. Lippe. The World in Our Day. N. Y. 1967; E. Wright. The World To-Day. N.Y. 1968 and others.

2 S. C. Easton. The Western Heritage from the Earliest Times to the Present. N. Y. 1961; ejusd. The Twilight of European Colonialism. A Political Analysis. N. Y. 1962; ejusd. A Brief History of Western Civilization. N. Y. 1962; ejusd. The Rise and Fall of Western Colonialism. A Historical Survey from the Early Nineteenth to the Present. N. Y. 1964; ejusd. World since 1918. N. Y. 1966.

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East - until August 1967) and mentions some events of 1968, the author made this period the subject of a special study.

In the preface and in the final chapter, S. Easton sets out the methodological principles that, in his opinion, should guide a scientist dealing with modern problems. The difficulty of studying post-war world history, he said, lies in the fact that the historian "cannot be completely objective in relation to events that occurred during his lifetime and some of which he directly observes." Therefore, he "has no other choice but to bring his own attitude to events to the reader's judgment" (pp. XIX-XX). Regarding himself, S. Easton notes that, striving for impartiality, he is ready to " question... some of the most important and decisive propositions usually taken for granted in the West" (p. XIX). However, the author's undisguised hostility to the growing and growing world socialist system leads him to analyze the post-war period from tendentious and unscientific positions that fundamentally contradict the concrete course of history. This deprives the peer-reviewed work of objectivity from the very beginning. At the same time, in a number of places with Easton is quite clear-headed about some issues of US foreign policy: This is not so much a deliberate emphasis on one's objectivity and impartiality as a forced necessity, under the pressure of absolutely indisputable facts, to admit much that contradicts the traditional theses of bourgeois historiography. It is no coincidence that "World History since 1945" is characterized by a number of logical contradictions and mutually exclusive provisions, which sometimes makes it difficult to find out the true position of the author, who generally adheres to moderate conservative views.

The general concept of post-war world development, laid down by S. Easton as the basis of his work, is a kind of theory of "bipolarization of the world", so widespread in modern American bourgeois historiography, especially in the analysis of international relations. The essence of this theory is that the history of the post-war decades is considered in terms of contrasting the policies of the two strongest powers-the United States and the USSR. He sees the main difference between the modern era in the replacement of the absolute world influence of European powers by the influence of the United States and the Soviet Union, which are in a state of "cold war" (p. 15). This characterization of modernity obscures the main thing - the growth and strengthening of the forces of socialism, their growing influence on world development, and at the same time the weakening of the world capitalist system - and reduces the whole problem to a comparative analysis of international relations: pre-war and post-war. Thus, the scientific analysis of the deep and basic processes of modernity is replaced by the study of secondary phenomena, where the author is more "free" in choosing subjective and biased schemes and versions. This, in turn, leads to the fact that the problems of class struggle, economics, science and technology, culture and art are practically excluded from modern history (except when some fragmentary information is used to "reinforce" the anti-scientific thesis about the "superiority" of capitalism over socialism). In contrast to the Marxist characterization of the modern era, which reflects the objective laws of social development and on this basis emphasizes the inevitability of the victory of socialism, the arguments of the author of "World History since 1945" appear as arbitrary and do not stand up to comparison with real facts.

As mentioned above, there are many contradictions in the book. If on page 15 he writes that the years "following 1945 are in sharp contrast to the immobility of the decades preceding the war", then further, speaking about the results of the development of the world for 1945-1967, the author asserts that, despite the changes that have taken place in the world for 21 years, "a large part of the world is still developing." part of it... it remained in a state of frozen immobility "(p. 84) due to the US policy of adhering to the"deterrence doctrine". Such a falsification of the character of the development of the post-war decades is necessary for the author in order to present the United States and its foreign policy as a decisive factor in modern international life.

Considering the political aspects of modern world history in the light of the theory of "bipolarization", S. Easton uses as a criterion for assessing all the most important events of the post - war decades the main principle of this theory-the "balance of power", according to which the existing conditions of the World War II are considered to be the "balance of power".

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It is alleged that in the international arena, "power centers" formed by the most powerful powers interested in creating a "balance of power" that is beneficial for each of them attract weaker states like magnets, and the latter's governments are supposedly faced with the task of realizing their role in this "balance"system. According to the author, the world balance of power, which until the beginning of the 50s was in favor of the USSR, then allegedly changed in favor of the United States. In the book under review, the principle of "balance of power "is applied in order to put forward a thesis about the alleged" aggressiveness "of the USSR and justify the policy of the United States, which allegedly" restrained "this" aggression " (pp. 928-929).

Easton's anti-communism is particularly blatant when he goes on to describe the history of individual countries belonging to different socio - economic systems. Here it follows the usual reactionary schemes of modern "Sovietology" 3 , which treats socialism as "totalitarianism" and capitalism as "free democracy". The author pays tribute to other "theories" that are fashionable in the West ("convergence", "modernization", etc.). S. Easton tries to prove that the USSR has lost its role as the vanguard of the world revolutionary movement, which is supposedly in a state of chaos in general (p.928). By juggling the concepts of modern bourgeois "Sovietology", S. Easton tries to hide the true essence of the differences between the two world systems and portray world history as a process developing in favor of the United States. Trying to cast doubt on the growth and international influence of the world socialist system (p. 409), S. Easton, under the pressure of facts, is forced to recognize the stability of the socialist community (p. 414), the success of the USSR, which, as he himself writes, "at present, undoubtedly, is the second greatest power in the world, and its system operates with the inherent in it, efficiency " (p. 399). The author writes, in particular, about the success of the GDR. "It was an amazing feat," he writes, "by any criteria-the transformation of eastern Germany into the second industrial power in the Soviet bloc and the fifth or sixth in Europe" (p.433).

When describing the internal development of the United States, p. Easton has to deal with facts that are not in favor of "free democracy." So, he mentions that in this: In the United States, "urban and rural poverty are the dark side of a social and economic system cloaked in visible and shared affluence" (p. 562), and that "outdated perceptions and dysfunctional state institutions prevent the equal distribution of income among all members of American society" (p.574). The author of" World History since 1945 " is forced to state to some extent the influence of the success of the Soviet Union on the development of the United States (p. 542).

Describing the history of Western European countries after World War II, the author tries to refute the Marxist conclusion about the deep crisis of modern capitalism and the inevitability of its demise. Showing how these countries were losing their global influence, he argues that, thanks to the patronage of the United States (p.15), capitalism was strengthening and growing in them. From the standpoint of American hegemonism, he reproaches France for "especially in recent years, doing everything possible to avoid the magical attraction of the United States and develop an independent policy" (p. 924).

S. Easton pays the greatest attention to the history of the "third world" countries, which, in his opinion, are the main "weight" on the scale of modern foreign policy scales (pp. 1045-1053). He is particularly concerned about the success of the Soviet Union in establishing comprehensive cooperation with the independent countries of Asia and Africa (p.926). In this regard, the author breaks out in numerous slanderous attacks on the foreign policy of socialist states (pp. 770, 993, 1049-1052) and at the same time tries to present the neocolonialist policy of the United States in a favorable light. The weakening of US influence in the independent states of Asia and Africa. Easton explains that the United States is supposedly unattainable as a model for direct imitation (p. 385), and also that the United States does not impose its influence on anyone and prefers to deal with states that "believe" in them (Taiwan, Thailand, South Korea, South Vietnam) (p. 1052).. It is characteristic that it is in these chapters that individual criticisms occur

3 See their criticism: B. I. Marushkin. Istoriya i politika [History and Politics], Moscow, 1969, pp. 324-345.

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regarding US foreign policy. So, speaking about the difficulties experienced by India, the author writes: "If only this was fully realized in the West... it (India - N. E.), perhaps, would again become a champion of the West... "(p. 822). "World History since 1945" criticizes such US foreign policy steps as, for example, the US intervention in Lebanon in 1958, the creation of the "Baghdad Pact" (p. 784), which, according to the author, did not give anything significant for the United States, while at the same time contributing to the growth of the USSR's authority in Arab countries.

It is quite obvious that with. Easton does not reject the main principled lines of US foreign policy, but only tries to criticize it from the standpoint of his pro-imperialist concept. This is also true for other sections of the book under review, such as the history of Latin American countries. Criticizing the U.S. policy in the area, which, as he notes, "does not promote social reform" (p. 997), the author defends the path proposed by J. R. R. Tolkien. Kennedy and consists in "helping" Latin American countries in order to prevent the development of a revolutionary process in them.

The author makes considerable efforts to remove the blame for the outbreak of the Cold War from American imperialism and attribute it to the Soviet Union. Here the "revision" of official concepts promised by the author generally turns out to be a repetition of the same well-worn slanderous arguments about imaginary Soviet expansionism (p.531).

In" World History since 1945, " questions about the future of relations between the USSR and the United States are also considered. S. Easton notes that in the 60s, a warming in the international situation began. The United States, he argues, has recognized that the policy of peaceful coexistence "is the only policy that makes sense in a nuclear - armed world" (p. 940). However, this is nothing more than a phrase, since the author still continues to defend the "policy of deterrence". Even the American aggression in Vietnam is seen by him as a continuation of this policy. As for the question of ending the Cold war, Easton attributes its decision not to the United States ' compliance with the principle of peaceful coexistence, but to the continuation of the bankrupt policy of "from a position of strength" and to new local wars.

It can be added that "World History since 1945", although it covers all countries of the world, does not really give a complete picture of the world-historical process, since the author does not recognize the universality of the laws of social development, which makes it impossible for him to find an objective basis for the interrelation and mutual influence of the historical development of various countries and peoples, without what the history of mankind can not be understood as a universal one.

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