1. The Establishment and Decay of Communism in East-Central Europe -- The Western Reaction and the Onset of the Cold War -- The Institutions of Communism -- Socioeconomic Changes in the Early Years of Communism -- Challenges to Communist Orthodoxy -- System Performance and Decay -- 2. Reform and Revolution in the Soviet Union and East-Central Europe -- Gorbachev's Reforms (1985-1989) -- 1989 : Revolution in Eastern Europe -- 3. Eastern European Responses to Revolution -- Rebuilding the Political Order -- The Postrevolutionary Political Process -- Constructing a Market Economy -- The Unification of Germany -- Revising the Alliance Systems -- 4. In Search of Explanations : Theories of Social, Economic, and Political Change -- Social Movements and Revolutions -- Theories of Democratization -- From State Socialism to Market -- The Reemergence of Nationalism in Europe -- 5. The Postcommunist Era in International Politics -- The Restructuring of Europe -- The Decline and Fall of the Soviet Union -- The End of the Cold War -- The Impact on the Third World -- The New Global Order.