GERMAN POLITICAL CULTURETerm Paper

Course : European political cultures

Professor : Lect .Dr. Cristina Petrescu

Author : Rusu Catalin

SPE III

-May 2013-

1

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. On German political culture ……………………………………………………. 3

2. The analysis of the main political features ………………………………………4

2.1 The Baader-Meinhof Complex ……………………………………...4

2.2 Das Wunder von Bern ………………………………………………8

2.3 Goodbye Lenin! …………………………………………………….11

3. Conclusions ………………………………………………………………………13

2

ON GERMAN POLITICAL CULTURE

In order to summarize the modern history of Germany,Ekkart Zimmermann is of

the opinion that“There are few nation-states whose political culture presents as much of a

puzzle as the German one”1.This argument is supported by certain characteristics of the

German political culture such as “more neighbors around her than any other European

state;a territorial expansion after the Munich agreement of 1938,almost as great as that of

the overstretched nineteenth-century Bismarck empire;the unconditional surrender in

1945 (…) and the division of Germany into two states by 1949,only for them to be

suddenly reunited in 1989”.2

The main question posed by Zimmermann refers to the degree to which the

German state can benefit from stability and prosperity on the accounts of a reunification

of two contrasting political cultures.We talk about a country which suffered because of

the dismantle of non-democratic political constructions.The dilemma is raised by the fact

that apart from the failure of the Holy Roman Empire and the German Empire,the 20 th

century marked the complete failure of the Weimar Republic and of the Nazi regime led

by Adolf Hitler.The year which marked the climax of defeats is 1945.It is the moment

when Germany suffered the loss in the Second World War,surrendering just as it did in

the context of the First World War.Therefore,how can a state be reconstructed on the

ashes of a nation influenced by its two biggest defeats in history?

The economic and political system of East and West Germany had to be subjected

to a process of reconstruction.In the light of reunification,the “legacy of history” was at

the basis of the strength of the West-German political culture3 whereas the Eastern

counterpart was obliged to learn from its mistakes in order to correct its cultural failure

during the period of the Cold War.The mix which resulted after the fall of the Berlin wall

had to be taken into account as a combination of strength and weakness,of recovery and

1 Ekkart Zimmermann, "Germany," in Roger Eatwell, ed., European Political Cultures: Conflict orConvergence? (London: Routledge, 1997) ,p.882 Ibid.3 Ekkart Zimmermann, "Germany," in Roger Eatwell, ed., European Political Cultures: Conflict orConvergence? (London: Routledge, 1997) ,p.89

3

backwardness.It was the main issue which dominated the German political culture in the

years which marked the beginning of the 90s.

THE ANALYSIS OF THE MAIN POLITICAL FEATURES

THE BAADER-MEINHOF COMPLEX

The main focus of the scenes of the “Baader-Meinhof Complex” movie is on the

context of the political culture of West Germany during the 1960s and 1970s.It has the

ability to present the main characteristics of the Federal Republic of Germany through the

terrorist actions of the group lead by the youngsters led by Andreas Baader and the left-

wing oriented journalist,Ulrike Meinhof.The opposition of the youngsters to the actions

of the German Government is caused by the fact that the so-called “imperialistic war” in

Vietnam is supported by the leaders of the FRG.The birth of the Red Army Faction as it

will be called the Baader-Meinhof group is linked with the student movement which

emerged in West Germany as a response to the authoritarianism of the government as

well and to the precarious living conditions of West-German students.This form of

protest which erupted in the last years of the 1960s had a worldwide impact on the left-

wing activists.In order to talk about the contrast between the political culture of the

Federal Republic of Germany and the ideology and policy of the Red-Army Faction there

has to be drawn a clear line between the two.

The division of Germany which took place at the beginning of the Cold War

points out that Germany was not only divided geographically but also politically.It shows

how the Cold War opponents managed to influence German politics through the birth of

East Germany in the occupation zone which belonged to the Soviet Union and the birth

of the West Germany on the territory belonging to the occupation zone of the Western

Allies:USA,Great Britain and France.The division of Berlin into its Eastern and Western

counterparts is not only territorial but political.On the one hand,we talk about a state

dominated by principles of socialism,a satellite of power for the Soviet Union in the long-

term conflict with the United States.Its values were similar to the ones of the USSR,

4

having a state-owned economy and a political culture subjected to the characteristics of

Marxist-Leninist socialism.On the other hand,West Germany is defined as a Federal

Parliamentary Republic.In addition to the form of government,the state is characterized

through its strong cooperation with the Western forces,France and USA,an alignment

with the Western cultural,political and economic values.In the light of the World War

Two,the economic revival of the FRG was possible only because of the support of the

United States through the means of the Marshall Plan.

In the context of the movie,the 1960s can be characterized as “a domestic crisis”

of the Federal Republic of Germany.This can be explained through the historical

importance of the Adenauer Era which came to an end in 1963.Chancellor Adenauer

managed to put the basis of the reconstruction of the state in the aftermath of the Second

World War.The state which was on the verge of economic collapse was transformed into

a powerful nation during the Adenauer Era especially because of the cooperation with the

Westerns.The coalition of Adenauer ended in a period when economic growth was

subjected to a severe decrease.The most striking indicator is the growth rate : it “evolved”

from 4.7% in 1962 to a rate of 2% in 1963.During the period of Adenauer’s

successor,Ludwig Erhard,economy into even deeper recession and the immediate

consequence was his substitution with Kurt Georg Kissinger.His “Grand Coalition” was

formed between the most important West-German parties: the CDU and the Social

Democratic Party (SPD).The main effect on the political culture of FRG is represented by

the new provisions for emergency acts.In other words,two-thirds majorities were required

for the enactment of new emergency acts.This controversial ruling which restricted

human and constitutional rights imposed limited freedom of speech and movement.The

negative consequence of this decision is marked by the opposition of the Free-

Democratic Party as well as the labor unions and Student movements which will emerge

at the end of the 1960s.These movements led to the appearance of the Baader-Meinhof

Group which will become the Red –Army Faction

RAF is described as the most important left-wing oriented group which was

founded in the aftermath of the Second World War on the territory of the Federal

Republic of Germany.Its creators are young leftist militants such as Andreas Baader and

Gudrun Ensslin and the left-wing oriented journalist,Ulrike Meinhof.Defined by a

5

communist ideology and an anti-imperialistic policy,the group acted against the actions

of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany which aimed to put the basis of

an imperialist power.The contrast between the Red Army Faction and the political culture

of FRG is pointed out through the words of the journalist Ulrike Meinhof “the only

freedom here (West Germany) is for the police” who additionally states that the protest of

the students proves that “we live in a police state”.

In opposition to the actions of the Red Army Faction,Ekkart Zimmermann states

that “The smooth transition from Christian-Democrat dominated coalitions during 1949-

1965,to the Grand Coalition,to a Social-Democrat led-government after 1969,further

underlined the democratic normalcy of the system”4 .We can deduct that the actions of

the leftist groups were heavily influenced by the economic theory of Marx because their

creed was that the West-German economy will led to an even bigger gap between the

lower class and the rich.The actions of RAF are identical with left wing terrorism which

is known as the set of action having the ultimate goal the “overthrow of capitalist

governments and their replacement with Marxist-Leninist socialism”5.

The political culture of the Federal Republic of Germany is incompatible with the

ideology of the group led by Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof.The opposition of the

FRG to the Eastern counterpart is underlined through the fact that until the 1970s,the

Federal Government didn’t recognize as legitimate the government of the German

Democratic Republic.Until “Neue Ostpolitik” which recognised the government of East

Germany as a “de facto” body there was no connection with the political elite of the

GDR.

There is no shadow of doubt that the measures taken at the end of 1960s and the

support of the American intervention in Vietnam are the two main reasons which led to

the discontent of the leftist militants.In terms of political culture,Marxism-Leninism is

characterized by egalitarianism,class conflict and anti –imperialistic and anti-fascist

policy and this is the model which the Red Army Faction wanted to impose within the

West-German society.The words of Ulrike who affirmed that “the only freedom here is

for the police” are determined by the fact that the German student Benno Ohnesorg ended

4 Ekkart Zimmermann, "Germany," in Roger Eatwell, ed., European Political Cultures: Conflict orConvergence? (London: Routledge, 1997) ,p.965 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left-wing_terrorism#cite_note-Brockhoff_p._17-8

6

up being shot in the head by police officer,Karl-Heinz Kurras.Years after this event it was

revealed that the officer had been a member of SEW,the West Berlin Communist Party.In

addition,he worked for the Ministry for State Security also known as Stasi which was in

fact the state security service of East Germany.Based on these assumptions that “a police

state” dominates the Federal Republic,many leftist militants joined the cause of Andreas

Baader and Ulrike Meinhof.

When it comes to the period of the 1970s,Ekkart Zimmermann affirms that “The

stability of West German society,which once again became apparent in handling the two

oil price shocks of 1973 and 1980,allowed it to become more and more of an attractive

model,mixing market incentives with state provisions and “guaranteeing”its inhabitants

a high standard of living”6 .It has to be emphasized that the 1970s decade was marked by

the terrorist actions of the Red Army Faction.Although the founders were inexperienced

ordinary citizens,the group managed to evolve from acting at a local scale to a national

one,attracting more than seven million supporters.Its development is defined by the

progress pointed out through the terrorist actions directed to the public institutions of

West Germany .Their operations aimed to catch the eye of the Federal Government,the

only “responsible” for the appearance of this militant guerilla group.The contrast between

the political values of West Germany and the ideology of the Red Army Faction led to

terrorism.

One of the most interesting facts about this contradiction of ideals has to be the

survival of the Red Army Faction even though its founders were arrested after the bomb

attacks directed to German authorities and American military personnel with the base in

Federal Germany.The appearance of the “Second Generation” shows that although West

Germany can be seen as a model of economic and political success ,its society is

disrupted on the basis of the cleavage between the right-wing oriented and the leftist

militants.It has to be stated that the operations of this “Generation” were targeted to

important public officials of the state.They used kidnapping and assassination as tools of

terror against the Federal Prosecutor Siegfried Buback,the President of Dresdner Bank,

Jurgen Ponto and Hanns Martin-Schleyer,the President of the Employers’ Association.It

6 Ekkart Zimmermann, "Germany," in Roger Eatwell, ed., European Political Cultures: Conflict orConvergence? (London: Routledge, 1997) ,p.96

7

had to underline the protest of the Red Army Faction against the against of the

government which refused to release the founders of the group.

To sum up,we have to affirm that the main point of the “Baader-Meinhof

Complex” movie is the contrast generated by the political culture of West Germany in the

1960s and 1970s in relation with the appearance of a left-militant group which aimed to

attract sympathizers through its violent actions in order to change the policy of the

Federal State in economic,political and diplomatic terms.

DAS WUNDER VOR BERN

The action of “Das Wunder von Bern” takes place in 1954 having the purpose to

present the political culture of the Federal Republic of Germany in the immediate

aftermath of the Second World War.Marked by a disastrous war which ended with the

defeat of the Germans and with the split of the state in two: the occupation zone of the

Western Allies and the one belonging to the Soviet Union.The birth of the Federal

Republic of Germany (West Germany) and of the German Democratic Republic ( East

Germany) was the proof of supreme defeat and such a disrupted society needed a

“miracle” in order to survive .

In order to talk about the “miracles” which took place within the West-German

society,it has to be emphasized that the movie has two main storylines:the road of the

West-German team to the 1954 World Cup final and the faith of the Lubanski family. In

the latter case,we talk about how the destiny of a mother and her three children is

changed by the return from the Russian camps of the former German prisoner of

war,Richard Lubansky.The head of the family returns after eleven years to a land that is

unrecognizable to him and to a family that is shocked by his alienation of reality.The

portrait of the Lubanski family and the images in which it is presented their neighborhood

in the city of Essen help us to create an image of the West-German political culture in the

outcome of the Second World War.

The scenes presenting Essen have the purpose to show the conditions in which

people lived.A city dominated by poverty with streets surrounded by heaps of debris and

houses damaged by the brutal conflict which marked the defeat of Germany.The poor

8

economic condition of West-Germany is underlined even better by the fact that children

play football with an improvised ball.Daily life is defined by a financial struggle to

survive against the economic burden of a state which has to be reconstructed after a

disastrous collapse.The irony is that Essen is located in a main industrial region

dominated by mining but this interesting fact has to show that poverty was the general

characteristic of Germany.

The first “miracle” witnessed regards the evolution of the former prisoner of

war.The dilemma which strikes the mind of former prisoners of war is defined by the

contrast between the two images of the society .The first one is defined by the prosperous

state,the world power that was Germany at the end of the 1930s.The current image is

distorted because it presents a state on the verge of collapse,families with no financial

future and a society which struggles in order to survive.This is the parallel that shocks

Richard Lubanski.In order to restore the old values,he tries to impose discipline within

the members of the family,managing to become a stranger even to his wife.This

psychological feature of the former prisoners of war might also be explained through the

fact that they are still shocked of the hell they have witnessed during war time.Without a

shadow of doubt,the scene which marks the “miracle” is the one in which Lubanski takes

his little son named Mattes on a road trip to the 1954 World Cup Final in Bern.

In order to talk about the features of the West-German political culture,there has

to be pointed out an important character:Bruno,the older brother of Mattes.He is the only

dominated by a complete rejection of the Nazi past,being perfectly portrayed by the

words of his father:”a big mouth with Communist ideas”.The reasons which led to his

departure to East Berlin are very well described by the scene in which he says to Mattes

“Everyone is equal there.There’s no rich or poor and no unemployment.There’s freedom

of speech”.This is a certain feature that shows the despair which dominated the Federal

Republic and the fact that some West-Germans might even travel to the Eastern

counterpart, dominated by equality and socialism.Another reason that leads to the

departure of Bruno is linked with the psychological condition of a former prisoner of war

who isn’t able to change his mentality.It is a common fact,a valid characteristic for the

West-German political culture because families had to reach a breaking point in order to

9

survive the precarious living conditions.For the former prisoners of war,the main test was

to face the cruel reality of a totally changed world.

Another tool through which the director managed to illustrate certain features of

the political culture is the contrast of images between the scenes shot in Essen and the

ones shot during the World Cup Tournament in Switzerland.It is the difference between

two worlds,one of them destroyed and torn to pieces whereas the other one looking bright

and prosperous.This can be explained through the fact that Switzerland was not invaded

during the two world conflicts which dominated the 20 th century.Instead of being

involved,Switzerland opted for neutrality and during the Second World War remained

independent through its cooperation with Germany.This is quite well emphasized through

the scenes in which Switzerland seems to be a colored nation,dominated by stability and

peace.On the other side,we see narrow streets and small buildings with no splash of color

whatsoever.The scenes shot in Essen seem to be dominated by darkness and lack of

harmony.In other words,we have the image of a world in which society witnessed a

catastrophic outcome of the war whereas in the case of the Swiss political culture we

identify harmony,prosperity and stability.

The second miracle of the movie culminates with the victory of West-Germany

over Hungary in the 1954 World Cup Final held in Bern.The whole tournament can be

associated with the 1954 political culture of the Federal Republic.The Germans were seen

a failure and this was additionally pointed out by the 8-3 loss against Hungary in the

Group Stage.The outcome of the match showed two torn apart universes united by

despair and distrust.Furthermore,the defeat of the national team amplified the restlessness

of the German society.A miracle appears when the former prisoner of war rediscovers the

pleasure to play football,the scene being associated with the 6-1 victory over the

Austrians in the Semifinal of the World Cup.The scenes presenting the Final of the World

Cup show how a nation lived through its national team,how a football miracle marked a

“miracle”within the German society.The unexpected win over the Hungarians is

connected with the mood of an entire nation.It is suggested that the winning of the 1954

World Cup can be considered the date when the Federal Republic of Germany was

born.The idea that strikes the mind of the viewer is that the political culture of Germany

was revived through this football miracle.

10

In order to conclude,it has to be stated that the movie “Das Wunder von Bern”

points out the condition of the German society in the light of the Second World War

events by using certain allegories and contrasts which manage to shape the image of a

disrupted and damaged world.

GOODBYE,LENIN!

Goodbye Lenin! is one of the most well-acclaimed movies which presents the

reality of the East-German political culture in the period of the Cold War.The main target

of the movie is to present the “bridge” that divided the East and the West in the aftermath

of the Second World War by pointing out through irony certain differences of the two

German societies.The two worlds are presented simultaneously,an allegory to the fact

that any type of cultural or political division can be overcome.

The scene which determines the sequence of events shows the demonstration of

East Germans against the existence of a wall that divides the two German states.It points

out a certain feature of the 1989 German Democratic Republic,a society dominated by

discontent of the fact that the results of local government elections were frauded.The

period of 1985-1989 is characterized as being the decline of the East-German state and

one of the main reasons which led to the disaster is emphasized by Ekkart Zimmermann

who affirms “East Germany was close to bankruptcy in the 1980s due to cuts in Soviet oil

supply and the exhaustion of her own resources.Thereafter she had to rely heavily on

credit from the West and on her own surface brown coal,causing gigantic ecological

damage”7.The Soviet model imposed within GDR came to an end,this being a clear-cut

case that followed the path of former Eastern communist regimes which fell in 1989.

The scene presenting the demonstration of the East-Germans culminates with the

moment when Christiane Kerner sees her son Alex getting beaten by the police

forces.After passing out ,she falls into a coma.She wakes up in a period when Germany

was no longer divided because of the fall of the Berlin Wall.Although Germany was

reunited,the doctors advise Alex to keep his mother safe in order to not create a shock 7 Ekkart Zimmermann, "Germany," in Roger Eatwell, ed., European Political Cultures: Conflict orConvergence? (London: Routledge, 1997) ,p.94

11

that would lead to her death.Thus,he wants to recreate the universe of East-Germany in

order to induce to his mother the fact that nothing happened while she was in a coma.It is

the action that outlines the antithesis between the two German worlds.The political

culture of the two former divisions of Germany are pointed out through the actions of

Alex which are in accordance with the wishes of his mother.

The transition from socialism to democracy,the substitution of censorship with

freedom of speech and the westernization of the German state is showed through the

scenes presented while Christiane was in coma.By presenting the night spent by Alex in a

club or the fact that Coca-Cola began to be sold in the German shops,the director aimed

to underline the way in which the political culture of the newly-created state was

characterized by democracy and liberty instead of “borrowing” the political features of

the German Democratic Republic.The contrast is also marked by the appearance of

pornography which started to be broadcasted through cable television.All these scenes

have the capacity to point out the rapid transition to which the former East-Germany was

subjected.What is even more interesting is that Alex wanted to recreate the universe of

the former GDR in order to keep his mother safe and out of the danger of suffering a fatal

shock.

The irony and nostalgia of the scenes has a powerful impact in showing how East-

Germany differed from the reunified Federal Republic of Germany.The mentality of the

former socialist state is envisioned through the wishes of Christiane.She is the one who

misses the patriotic songs ,the taste of German pickled cucumbers or even the content of

a newscast.The fact that Alex has to struggle in order to fulfill the wishes of his mother

shows how much has changed the political culture of the state after reunification.From

the image of a decent life which was possible under socialism we are transferred into a

world dominated by a diversity and capitalistic opportunities.The character of Christiane

Kerner is the perfect image of the former residents of East-Germany who are nostalgic of

the historical past,a dominant feature in the years which followed the reunification of the

two German states.

Without a shadow of doubt,the director takes into account the Kerner family as a

metaphor,as a tool through which East Germany is contrasting West-Germany.The father

of Alex who left Christiane for a “Western affair” is the image which generated the

12

loyalty of a damaged wife to socialism and its values.The personal failures of her

character outlines the discrepancies that divide the two states,the contrast between the

peaceful and human conditions of the East in comparison with the turmoil created by the

Western influence.In other words,the Kerner family is an allegory,a distinction between

between the political and cultural values of two states divided by a wall.The devotion of

the woman to the values of GDR such as the patriotic shows or the dependence on the

own production emphasizes the reluctance of East Germany to foreign products.Another

allegory used in order to present the image of a reunified state is represented by the visit

paid by Robert Kerner to his ailing wife.

“Goodbye Lenin!” remains a famous cinematographic masterpiece which used

scenes and characters in order to create a tragicomic situation of the transformation of the

former German Democratic Republic.The movie uses the emotion of nostalgia when

presenting the substitution of socialism with capitalism values which dominated the

entire spectrum of the political culture of Germany at the beginning of the 1990s.

CONCLUSIONS

The three masterpieces are relevant in order to underline the main characteristics

of the German political culture in the light of the second part of the 20 th century.They

present the political and historical context through comic or tragic scenes with the usage

of irony or reality.The key element is defined by the distinction shown between the two

worlds.On the one hand,we talk about an universe which is opened to the Western

influences,to the products of United States or France.On the other hand,it is the image of

a clone,a copy of the Soviet Union and its principles.A catastrophic Second World War is

identified as the cause of this domino effect which affected the German society until

reunification,when the two distinct political cultures were united by values such as

German identity,patriotism,modernization or democracy.It is the creed that led to the fall

of the Berlin Wall,a construction which divided a nation into two entities.

13

BIBLIOGRAPHY

» EATWELL,Roger ,European Political Cultures , Routledge Publisher, 1997

» http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left-wing_terrorism#cite_note-Brockhoff_p._17-8

» http://www.baader-meinhof.com/tag/red-army-faction/

» KUUSINEN, Otto , Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism , Lawrence & Wishart;1St

Edition, 1961

» TURNER Jr,Henry A. ,The Two Germanies since 1945 , Yale University Press , 1989

14

15