On Revolutionary Situations, Stages of Revolution, and Some Other Aspects of the Theory of Revolution

Leonid Grinin analyzes several theoretical aspects of important revolutionary phenomena. In particular, he analyzes some of the ways in which international relations and the World System as a whole can influence the emergence of a revolution and its outcome and vice versa—how revolutions and their waves can affect the World System and the balance of power within the world order. The author also examines the ways in which revolutions can affect the current international role of revolutions, and their use as a geopolitical weapon. It is very important since, according to George Lawson, there is something amiss with how revolutionary theory approaches the international. The chapter also considers the concept of “revolutionary situation” and proposes its clarification and the introduction of new precise concepts. A special section is dedicated to “great revolutions”. It shows the differences between them and ordinary revolutions. The following section concerns the problem of the stages of revolution and the details of the revolutionary cycle, including the so-called Thermidor phase. The last section is devoted to analyzing elite behavior in those situations when, supporting the revolution, certain elites lose their sense of self-preservation in the pre-revolutionary period and in the beginning of a revolution.