Apparatus members and apparatus management in the frech communist party through the example of parisian banlieue federations (1944-1974) ; Acteurs et pratiques de l'encadrement communiste à travers l'exemple des fédérations PCF de banlieue parisienne (1944-1974)

Using various new sources, especially several hundred biographical files from the archives from the National Committee of the French communist party (FCP) and from the local organizations within the “banlieue” of Paris (suburban area of Paris), this thesis adresses the question of production and reproduction of communist militant elites, from Liberation until the mid-1970s. This issue is tackled through the analysis of the management policy and its methods (biographical control, vigilance, selection and political education mechanisms) as well as through the prosopographical and socio-biographical study of several militant populations, in particular of the members of the intermediate staff of the Paris “banlieue” federations from 1953 to 1974. Based on social history, sociology and political science, this dissertation examines the legitimation processes at work within the French communist party and their evolution in the face of various social and political issues : World War II and Resistance, working class transformations, renewal of the militant audience of the FCP, etc. It also favors a look “from below” and an “actor based” approach with a specific attention to professionalization of the communist militants and the internal practices of political homogenization. ; A travers diverses sources inédites, et en particulier grâce à plusieurs centaines de dossiers biographiques issus des archives des fédérations de banlieue parisienne et du Comité national du PCF, cette thèse s' interroge sur les logiques de production et de reproduction des élites militantes communistes, de la Libération au milieu des années 1970. Cette problématique est abordée à travers l'analyse de la politique d'encadrement et de ses méthodes (contrôle biographique, vigilance, mécanismes de sélection et de formation) ainsi qu'à travers l'étude prosopographique et socio-biographique de plusieurs populations militantes, au premier rang desquelles figure le personnel intermédiaire des fédérations de banlieue parisienne entre 1953 et 1974. Ce ...