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BOOK REVIEWS 241 tactical mistakes once in the European Community than he is of its decision to stay aloof from Europe for so long. Tugendhat believes that despite many failures the European Community has been a success, and he describes it as "one of the most important and hopeful political experiments to have been undertaken in this part of the world in modern times." He argues that it is not generally perceived as a success in Europe because of the large discrepancy between the lofty rhetoric of politicians and the reality of a complex community of twelve discrete member states. One limitation of Making Sense ofEurope is that the author's story ends in 1985, just as the European Community begins a new and important phase in its evolution. The book's apparent "datedness," if nothing else, demonstrates how quickly events in Europe are moving. The Europe with which Tugendhat leaves the reader has accomplished a great deal but is languishing, beset by problems, badly in need of institutional repair, and bereft of a vision. Although this may have been the prevailing mood in 1985, it is clearly not so at this time. One senses that Tugendhat would be pleasantly surprised by recent developments : the dynamism and vision of the Delors Commission, the excitement generated by the 1992 program, and the passage of the Single European Act, which makes modest yet important institutional reforms. Even with its limitations, Making Sense of Europe is an excellent book that is well worth reading. Russia and the West: Gorbachev and the Politics ofReform. ByJerry Hough. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1988. 301 pp. $19.95/cloth. Reviewed byfennifer Varrell, M.A. candidate, SAIS. In Russia and the West: Gorbachev and the Politics of Reform Jerry Hough presents a new approach to understanding Gorbachev's succession and the problems the general secretary faces in dealing with the Soviet system. Hough portrays Gorbachev as a twentieth-century Peter the Great, striving to open Soviet society to the economic and social forces of the West. Unlike many other contemporary Sovietologists, Hough sees the Bolshevik revolution as an aberration in the flow of Russian history: fearing the developmental course of Western capitalistic forces, the Bolsheviks gave in to xenophobia and lowered the curtain on Western influence in the country. While Hough reviews the historical, political, and economic developments that took place between the revolution and Gorbachev's rise to power, more interesting is his analysis of the current situation in the Soviet Union. He portrays a society in which there are enormous pressures for change and where, after almost seventy years of rulers who did not respond to these pressures, there is finally a leader calling for radical transformation of the economy and society. Gorbachev's priorities reflect his understanding that, in this era of geopolitical stalemate, security rests on an efficient and technologically advanced society. Backing Gorbachev in his efforts is the educated middle class, which, despite the efforts of the party, is strongly oriented to the West. 242 SAIS REVIEW Gorbachev clearly stands apart from the standard party apparatchik. Unlike his predecessors, he grew up as part of a generation that rejoiced in the denunciation of Stalin, he holds a degree in law (as opposed to science or engineering ), he consolidated his power position rapidly, and, as Hough points out, he was groomed for the position of party secretary from an early point in his career. The skill with which Gorbachev has established his power base demonstrates his astuteness as a politician, and, according to Hough, he has many factors on his side in attempting to make changes never before accomplished. According to Hough, one of the reasons for the Soviet Union's economic weakness is that it has shut itself off from the West, refusing to participate in the exchange of ideas and dooming itself to backwardness. Because Gorbachev sees foreign policy as an extension of domestic policy, he perceives this technological weakness to be a distinct disadvantage in the international arena. Yet Hough frequently points out that, despite the revolutionary language that has accompanied his reforms, Gorbachev is striving for political liberalization within a one-party system and for economic reform within a...

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