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Agrarian Socialism: Cooperative Commonwealth Federation in Saskatchewan
s/t: A Study in Political Sociology
- GenresCanadaHistoryNonfiction
511 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1950
65 people want to read
About the author
Seymour Martin Lipset
208 books28 followersSeymour Martin Lipset was an American political sociologist, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, and the Hazel Professor of Public Policy at George Mason University. His major work was in the fields of political sociology, trade union organization, social stratification, public opinion, and the sociology of intellectual life. He also wrote extensively about the conditions for democracy in comparative perspective.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 21, 2014
Lipset's early study of socialism in Saskatchewan is excellent. He's a sociologist, but much of his analysis is historical. I found the early chapters, that compare the traditions of agrarian radicalism in the Canadian West and American West, to be the most interesting. Here, Lipset looks at single-crop farming communities on both sides of the border and compares their histories before and during the Great Depression. In the US, the New Deal helped farmers through the Depression and, in doing so, hampered the growth of movements advocating socialism. Saskatchewan was the hardest hit region in Canada during the Depression, but did not have any effective relief plan that compared to the New Deal. This spurred the growth of radicalism on the prairies, but there were other factors at work here too. Lipset explains how agrarian radical leaders were not doctrinaire Soviet-style socialists. Instead, they pushed a unique brand of radicalism suited to the people of the Canadian West. Two of the main features that set it apart were its protection of individual property rights and strong connection with Christianity. Many socialist political leaders were already leaders in the community prior to their political involvement (ministers, cooperative leaders etc.), they weren't on the fringes of society. Generally, socialists appealed to many values (community cooperation, social gospel...) that were already deeply engrained in Saskatchewan rural life.
Later chapters focus on how the CCF managed to stay in power once elected. Lipset demonstrates the pragmatism of many CCF leaders here as the party negotiated through politically dangerous issues, such as state-funded medicare, and how they adjusted the party platform to appeal to urban voters. He has some interesting things to say here about the impressive rate of political participation in the CCF and how it operated at a grass-roots level. He also addresses issues concerning the role of bureaucracy and the civil service in governments that are trying to implement revolutionary change. These later chapters move away from a historical analysis and didn't hold my interest as much as the first half of the book, but might be of more interest to someone with more of a sociology or political science background.
My main complaint about the book is that Lipset generally ignores CCF reforms that targeted marginalized people - many of which were experimental and unprecedented. This is where the CCF's greatest achievements and most embarrassing failures were. The party's Aboriginal policy was a complete disaster, whereas it's mental health policy was excellent. These are interesting topics that you won't find addressed in Lipset. Instead, he focuses mainly on how the CCF made itself appealing to large portions of the electorate.
Later chapters focus on how the CCF managed to stay in power once elected. Lipset demonstrates the pragmatism of many CCF leaders here as the party negotiated through politically dangerous issues, such as state-funded medicare, and how they adjusted the party platform to appeal to urban voters. He has some interesting things to say here about the impressive rate of political participation in the CCF and how it operated at a grass-roots level. He also addresses issues concerning the role of bureaucracy and the civil service in governments that are trying to implement revolutionary change. These later chapters move away from a historical analysis and didn't hold my interest as much as the first half of the book, but might be of more interest to someone with more of a sociology or political science background.
My main complaint about the book is that Lipset generally ignores CCF reforms that targeted marginalized people - many of which were experimental and unprecedented. This is where the CCF's greatest achievements and most embarrassing failures were. The party's Aboriginal policy was a complete disaster, whereas it's mental health policy was excellent. These are interesting topics that you won't find addressed in Lipset. Instead, he focuses mainly on how the CCF made itself appealing to large portions of the electorate.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews