In this social and cultural history of Czechoslovakia’s “gentle revolution,” James Krapfl shifts the focus away from elites to ordinary citizens who endeavored—from the outbreak of revolution in 1989 to the demise of the Czechoslovak federation in 1992—to establish a new, democratic political culture. Unique in its balanced coverage of developments in both Czech and Slovak lands, including the Hungarian minority of southern Slovakia, this book looks beyond Prague and Bratislava to collective action in small towns, provincial factories, and collective farms. Through his broad and deep analysis of workers’ declarations, student bulletins, newspapers, film footage, and the proceedings of local administrative bodies, Krapfl contends that Czechoslovaks rejected Communism not because it was socialist, but because it was arbitrarily bureaucratic and inhumane. The restoration of a basic “humanness”—in politics and in daily relations among citizens—was the central goal of the revolution. In the strikes and demonstrations that began in the last weeks of 1989, Krapfl argues, citizens forged new symbols and a new symbolic system to reflect the humane, democratic, and nonviolent community they sought to create. Tracing the course of the revolution from early, idealistic euphoria through turns to radicalism and ultimately subversive reaction, Revolution with a Human Face finds in Czechoslovakia’s experiences lessons of both inspiration and caution for people in other countries striving to democratize their governments.

In December 1989, Václav Havel and a relatively small group of intellectuals and students brought about the collapse of the communist regime of Czechoslovakia in what is now known as the Velvet Revolution. Making History: Czech Voices of Dissent and the Revolution of 1989 brings together the personal narratives of eleven former dissidents who, though close associates of Havel, operated without his international celebrity. The narratives, based on interviews conducted by the author in Prague and Berlin, relate each individual's personal experiences on topics such as growing up in Czechoslovakia, life as a dissident, the Velvet Revolution, and the achievements and failures of the Czech Republic since 1989. Through their many voices we come to understand that the life of a dissident is one of hardship, uncertainty, and constant surveillance; yet at the same time life in the underground allows a certain degree of freedom unattainable in official society. For more information about the book, please visit Michael Long's website.