Questioning Gender Stereotypes Under Socialism: Fatherly Emotions and the Case of Single Fathers

This chapter investigates the issue of fatherhood in socialist East-Central Europe (East Germany and Czechoslovakia). Far from attempting to give a full picture of the phenomenon of fatherhood under socialism, the author’s aim is to discuss the critical potential of addressing masculinities and fatherhood under communist rule. Indeed, while largely neglected by historians so far, part of the debates about fatherhood challenged traditional gender stereotypes, strongly disagreed with communist family policies, and opened a space for frank criticism of one of the communists’ central claims: equality. Two phenomena are particularly significant in this respect: fatherly emotions and the case of lone fathers. This article is a first effort to bring these debates forward, in drawing on a few selected case studies from different fields, such as the media, film, and labor