Utilizing hundreds of confidential documents from authorities in the Franco government, "Fear and Progress: Ordinary Lives in Franco's Spain, 1939-1975" recounts the experiences of Spanish citizens who lived during the 40-year Franco dictatorship. This title rejects traditional explanations of the length of Franco's power and the dictator's legacy. It utilizes hundreds of confidential documents from authorities in the Franco government. It provides insights into life during the Franco era: how political violence and repression were experienced; how the dictatorship exploited illusions of peace and prosperity for its own benefit; and, how the regime's legacy was manipulated. It reveals the Franco government's social callousness and manipulation of events.

Contents: List of Figures. List of Plates. Note on Sources and Abbreviations. Glossary of Key Terms. Introduction: Ordinary Spaniards in Extraordinary Times. 1. The Politics of Fear. Manipulating Fear. The Fruits of Terror. The Lost People and the New Country. Imposing Consent. Faking Politics. 2. The Social Cost of the Dictatorship. From Famine to Misery. Surviving. The Humiliations of Misery. Autarky's Long Agony. Failure to Educate. 3. Migration. The End of the Peasantry. To the City. To Europe. Housing. From Immigrants to Neighbors. Left Behind. 4. A Changing Society. The Altar and the Street. Morals. Becoming Consumers. Leisure. New Areas of Confusion. 5. Roads to Citizenship. A Demobilized Society. Old Memories, New Expectations. The Risks of Peace. The Beginning of the End. Facing the Future. Notes. Bibliography. Index.