Kwisatz Haderach
10th September 2007, 12:10
I don't really believe history could have gone any other way than it did, but I've always been interested in alternative history fiction. You know, the kind of fiction that speculates on what might have happened if certain events had gone differently.
It's too bad that this genre has never been used to convey a political message. One could imagine a world in which the Spartacist Uprising succeeded, for example, or one where the Left Opposition won in the Soviet Union, or one where Stalin was never denounced by the CPSU (perhaps because Khruschev never rose to power) and so on and so forth.
I'd like to use this topic for brainstorming about the things that might have happened in two distinct scenarios which I hope to develop into full alternative history stories some day. Perhaps I could get some help from comrades more knowledgeable than me on historical matters.
Scenario #1: In some way or other, a workers' revolution triumphs in Germany between 1919 and 1922 (perhaps led by Karl and Rosa, perhaps not). It would be interesting the explore the relationship between the resulting German socialist state and the Russian Bolsheviks. Perhaps a much larger Soviet Union could be created in this universe; obviously WW2 would never happen, and class struggles would erupt all over Europe during the 20s and 30s. Lacking German support, Franco would be defeated in Spain. A socialist Europe could slowly take shape; colonial empires in the Eastern hemisphere would be dissolved. Japan and the United States would remain as the major imperialist powers, but this scenario could easily end with the final defeat of capitalism in the last years of the 20th century.
Scenario #2: "A world without communism." - What if the Bolsheviks lost the Russian Civil War? This scenario could begin with Russia being divided up between imperialist powers and rival monarchist factions. With no Comintern and no Soviet example, revolutionary politics would be much weaker than in real history, very possibly leading to a triumph of fascism in the 30s or 40s. In this scenario, the Nazis win WW2 and carry out their genocidal plans in Europe. The United States and Britain remain the two major imperialist powers in the global south. With no Soviet assistance, national liberation struggles falter. Eventually, a new imperialist war near the end of the 20th century leads the widespread use of nuclear weapons and the fall of human civilization.
It's too bad that this genre has never been used to convey a political message. One could imagine a world in which the Spartacist Uprising succeeded, for example, or one where the Left Opposition won in the Soviet Union, or one where Stalin was never denounced by the CPSU (perhaps because Khruschev never rose to power) and so on and so forth.
I'd like to use this topic for brainstorming about the things that might have happened in two distinct scenarios which I hope to develop into full alternative history stories some day. Perhaps I could get some help from comrades more knowledgeable than me on historical matters.
Scenario #1: In some way or other, a workers' revolution triumphs in Germany between 1919 and 1922 (perhaps led by Karl and Rosa, perhaps not). It would be interesting the explore the relationship between the resulting German socialist state and the Russian Bolsheviks. Perhaps a much larger Soviet Union could be created in this universe; obviously WW2 would never happen, and class struggles would erupt all over Europe during the 20s and 30s. Lacking German support, Franco would be defeated in Spain. A socialist Europe could slowly take shape; colonial empires in the Eastern hemisphere would be dissolved. Japan and the United States would remain as the major imperialist powers, but this scenario could easily end with the final defeat of capitalism in the last years of the 20th century.
Scenario #2: "A world without communism." - What if the Bolsheviks lost the Russian Civil War? This scenario could begin with Russia being divided up between imperialist powers and rival monarchist factions. With no Comintern and no Soviet example, revolutionary politics would be much weaker than in real history, very possibly leading to a triumph of fascism in the 30s or 40s. In this scenario, the Nazis win WW2 and carry out their genocidal plans in Europe. The United States and Britain remain the two major imperialist powers in the global south. With no Soviet assistance, national liberation struggles falter. Eventually, a new imperialist war near the end of the 20th century leads the widespread use of nuclear weapons and the fall of human civilization.