This monograph traces the history of the dissident as a transnational phenomenon, exploring Soviet dissidents in Communist Central Europe from the mid-1960s until 1989. It argues that our understanding of the transnational activist would not be what it is today without the input of Central European oppositionists and ties the term to the global emergence and evolution of human rights. The book examines how we define dissidents and explores the association of political resistance to authoritarian regimes, as well as the impact of domestic and international recognition of the dissident figure. Turning to literature to analyse the meaning and impact of the dissident label, the book also incorporates interviews and primary accounts from former activists. Combining a unique theoretical approach with new empirical material, this book will appeal to students and scholars of contemporary history, politics and culture in Central Europe. 

“Kacper Szulecki tackles one of the holy words of the twentieth century. Scholarship has long needed an analysis of the figure of the dissident, to overcome the warm and fuzzy notion that the dissident is simply a noble person opposing a bad regime. Szulecki’s analysis is rigorous, clear, and engaging. The payoff is significant: He gives us back the dissident, now recovered as a useful category of historical, global analysis. This is an essential text for scholars of contentious politics.” (Padraic Kenney, Professor of History and International Studies, Indiana University Bloomington, USA)

Explores the origin and meanings of the term ‘dissident’ in relation to the history of the emergence and development of international human rights Offers a new theoretical model for conceptualizing the dissident within a transnational framework Draws on primary sources in the local languages and first-hand accounts from former Soviet dissidents in Central Europe

GPSR Compliance The European Union's (EU) General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) is a set of rules that requires consumer products to be safe and our obligations to ensure this. If you have any concerns about our products you can contact us on ProductSafety@springernature.com. In case Publisher is established outside the EU, the EU authorized representative is: Springer Nature Customer Service Center GmbH Europaplatz 3 69115 Heidelberg, Germany ProductSafety@springernature.com