Of “raisins” and “yeast”: mobilisation and framing in the East German revolution of 1989

There is no shortage of literature on the social movements that arose in East Germany in 1989. Numerous studies have shed light upon the nature, scale and dynamics of the uprising of that year. But on certain issues questions remain. No consensus exists, for example, on the relationship between the “civic groups” (New Forum, Democratic Awakening, etc.) and the street protests of the autumn of 1989. Were these simply two facets of a single movement? Or are they better characterised as two distinct streams within the same movement delta? Did the street protests push the civic movement activists into the limelight? Or is it more accurate to say, with Reinfried Musch, that “the civic movement brought the people onto the streets”?1 This paper considers two contrasting interpretations of these issues, and finds both wanting. An alternative interpretation is offered, one that draws upon Marc Steinberg's “dialogical” development of frame theory

“A very orderly retreat”: Democratic transition in East Germany, 1989-90

East Germany's 1989-90 democratisation is among the best known of East European transitions, but does not lend itself to comparative analysis, due to the singular way in which political reform and democratic consolidation were subsumed by Germany's unification process. Yet aspects of East Germany's democratisation have proved amenable to comparative approaches. This article reviews the comparative literature that refers to East Germany, and finds a schism between those who designate East Germany's transition “regime collapse” and others who contend that it exemplifies “transition through extrication”. It inquires into the merits of each position and finds in favour of the latter. Drawing on primary and secondary literature, as well as archival and interview sources, it portrays a communist elite that was, to a large extent, prepared to adapt to changing circumstances and capable of learning from “reference states” such as Poland. Although East Germany was the Soviet state in which the positions of existing elites were most threatened by democratic transition, here too a surprising number succeeded in maintaining their position while filing across the bridge to market society. A concluding section outlines the alchemy through which their bureaucratic power was transmuted into property and influence in the “new Germany”

Charakteristika der staatlichen Einbindung von Eliten und Bevölkerung in Ideokratien

"This paper shows that ideocracies, especially communist ideocracies, have a specific pattern of cooptation and incorporation of elites and ordinary citizens, which is different from all other political regime types. Ideocracies dominate society through and through by a net of measures that make the citizens materially dependent on the state, from which the individual citizen cannot escape. The strong concentration of the distribution of goods and positions in the hands of the ideocratic state goes hand in glove with the great power to repress non - co - opted people. However, there are trade - offs in the ideocratic pattern of cooptation. The tendency of ideocracies to infantilize its citizens, may provoke reluctance even among otherwise politically indifferent citizens. Nevertheless, despite the trade - offs, the specific pattern of cooptation and incorporation of citizens and elites might help to explain why communist ideocracies were very durable in comparison to other types of political regimes." (author's abstract

Political travel across the ‘Iron Curtain’ and Communist youth identities in West Germany and Greece in the 1970s and 1980s

This article explores tours through the Iron Curtain arranged by West German and Greek pro-Soviet Communist youth groups, in an attempt to shed light on the transformation of European youth cultures beyond the ‘Americanisation’ story. It argues that the concept of the ‘black box’, employed by Rob Kroes to describe the influence of American cultural patterns on Western European youth, also applies to the reception of Eastern Bloc policies and norms by the Communists under study. Such selective reception was part of these groups’ efforts to devise a modernity alternative to the ‘capitalist’ one, an alternative modernity which tours across the Iron Curtain would help establish. Nevertheless, the organisers did not wish such travel to help eliminate American/Western influences on youth lifestyles entirely: the article analyses the excursions’ aims with regard to two core components of youth lifestyles in Western Europe since the 1960s, which have been affected by intra-Western flows, the spirit of ‘doing one’s own thing’ and transformations of sexual practices. The article also addresses the experience of the travellers in question, showing that they felt an unresolved tension: the tours neither served as a means of Sovietisation nor as an impulse to develop an openly anti-Soviet stance.PostprintPeer reviewe

Approaches to German Contemporary History since 1945: Politics and Paradigms

'Contemporary history' is inherently relevant to, indeed an integral part of, political and social processes in the present. Yet, despite a high level of politicisation of historical debates, the issue of 'objectivity' or 'value neutrality' cannot be addressed solely in terms of the views of the individual historian, or the wider functions fulfilled by a particular historical interpretation. Attention needs to be shifted to the conceptualisation and 'emplotment' of a historical narrative within a given theoretical paradigm. Professional history entails not (merely) the imposition of creative stories, as post-modernists would have it, nor (only) the digging up of ever more 'facts' about the past, as on the empiricist view. Rather, it is a puzzle-solving discipline requiring appropriate conceptual tools for the investigation of specific, theoretically constructed, questions. This article reviews recent developments in German contemporary history in the light of this framework.'Zeitgeschichte' ist ein konstitutiver Teil politischer und sozialer Prozesse in der Gegenwart. Doch trotz der starken Politisierung historischer Debatten kann die Frage der 'Objektivität' oder 'Wertneutralität' weder allein mit Verweis auf Ansichten des einzelnen Historikers noch mit Verweis auf allgemeine gesellschaftliche Funktionen einer historischen Interpretation diskutiert werden. Erforderlich ist vielmehr, den Blick auf die Anlage des jeweiligen historischen Narrativs innerhalb eines theoretischen Paradigmas zu lenken. Im Gegensatz zur postmodernen Sicht ist Geschichtswissenschaft nicht (nur) kreatives Geschichtenschreiben; im Gegensatz zur empiristischen Sicht ist sie aber auch kein bloßes Ausgraben neuer 'Fakten'. Eher ist die Geschichtwissenschaft als rätsellösende Disziplin zu verstehen, die sich dafür auf geeignete theoretische Konzepte stützen muss. Der Aufsatz bilanziert aus dieser Perspektive die Entwicklung der neueren deutschen Zeitgeschichtsforschung

L'Allemagne avant et après 1989 : perspectives britanniques

[eng] Abstract The fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the GDR took by surprise public opinion in Britain — like in other countries ; interpretations and explanations of those momentous events often were mistaken. A sharp contrast is generally perceived between the political stability which the GDR enjoyed for 40 years and its sudden breakdown. Actually, stability was more apparent than real, as there was an undercurrent of frequent agitation ; on the other hand, for a dozen years, movements of dissent had gathered strength, while the ruling elites were getting weaker. When the Soviet Union withdrew her unconditional support, the end came quickly. Likewise, the reunification process, which Chancellor Kohl conducted, was amazingly fast. Britain only had a minor role, of watching the developments of 1989-1990, but both government and public opinion soon worried about the power of reunited Germany, and also about the re-emergence of right-wing extremism. The author is critical of the widespread stereotypes about «German national character» (and of this very concept). Nonetheless, the new Germany has to face serious challenges, even though a parallel with the 1930's is fallacious. But those issues must be seriously and objectively investigated. [fre] Résumé La chute du Mur de Berlin et l'effondrement de la RDA ont pris par surprise l'opinion britannique — comme celle des autres pays ; les interprétations et explications de ces événements ont été souvent erronées. On a trop vu un contraste frappant entre la stabilité politique de la RDA pendant 40 ans et la soudaineté de son effondrement. En fait la première n'était qu'apparente et cachait une succession de troubles ; par ailleurs, depuis une dizaine d'années des mouvements d'opposition se renforçaient et l'élite dirigeante s'affaiblissait. Quand l'URSS eut retiré son soutien inconditionnel, les choses allèrent très vite. De même le processus de réunification, dont le chancelier Kohi fut Partisan, surprit par sa rapidité. La Grande-Bretagne ne joua qu'un rôle minime dans les événements de 1989 et 1990, mais l'opinion et le gouvernement s'inquiétèrent bientôt de la puissance de l'Allemagne réunifiée et de la renaissance de l'extrême-droite. L'auteur critique les stéréotypes si répandus sur le «caractère national allemand» (et le concept lui-même). Cependant l'Allemagne nouvelle se heurte à des problèmes très sérieux — même si le parallèle avec les années 1930 est trompeur ; mais ils doivent être étudiés sérieusement et objectivement.