During the 1970s radical politics in France underwent major changes, with the rise of the Socialist Party, the decline of the Communists, and the loss of faith in Marxism. Together with the diminished significance of the industrial proletariat and the problems presented by the electoral success of 1981, this represents a turning point in modern French history. In this now classic study, Tony Judt argues that these developments must be understood in the context of the broader history of the labour and socialist movements in France since the early nineteenth century, and in doing so he suggests a new, more coherent perspective on a subject whose various elements-the history of labour, socialist thought, the Communist and Socialist parties, and modern French Marxist philosophy-have too often been examined in isolation. Also Newly Available: Socialism in Provence 1871-1914, A Grand Illusion?, and Past Imperfect. Book jacket.