The Unique Experience of Romania

Document Based Questions

Using the primary sources included in this module, respond to one of the following prompts:

1. Unlike other communist countries experiencing the changes of 1989, Romania saw an explosion of violence as it moved toward a more democratic government. Using the sources in this Module analyze what factors might explain why Romania’s experience was so different?

2. Dramatic political and social changes always have causes within the society at large. What elements of Romanian society around 1989 best explain the collapse of the Ceausescu regime, which took only one week to collapse in December, 1989?