Choice and Democratic Order: The French Socialist Party, 1937-1950

Choice and Democratic Order describes the history of the French Socialist Party (the SFIO) during the breakdown of peace in the late 1930s, the period of the Vichy regime, and the postwar reconstruction. The focus of the study is on the party's leadership group and, in particular, how it was affected by several phases of internal conflict, the most serious of which occurred in 1938 and in 1946. Professor Graham emphasizes the continuities between the pre- and postwar periods, and his approach enables the reader to observe major figures such as Leon Blum and Guy Mollet working within the complex structures of their party.