ABSTRACT
This chapter begins by tracing briefly the history of the new lefts; and focuses on the key analytical and strategic concepts which have emerged from New Left action during the last fifteen years. It aims to evaluate the vitality of the New Left position on the European scene today and its dialectical interaction with the political system. The series of themes and actions which today are thought of as the New Left really date back to the mid-fifties, more specifically to a series of events, international as well as domestic, political as well as ideological, which occurred in the years around 1956. During 1966-69, mass movements broke out all over Europe, representing the fusion of diverse political and ideological currents, and ultimately giving way to spontaneous collective movements. The most important endogenous factor underlying the deflagration of the great revolts in 1967-68 was the increase in the number of students and the resulting university crisis.
