The Official Concept of the Nation in the Former GDR
The Official Concept of the Nation in the Former GDR

Author: Joanna McKay

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2019-01-04

Total Pages: 176

ISBN-13: 0429806000

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First published in 1998, this volume joined the effort to understand the former German Democratic Republic, with the aim of reaching a better understanding of the psychologically painful process of German reunification following the collapse of East-German communism in 1989. While born illegitimate and artificial, the country determined the lives of millions of people, despite having now disappeared from the map. This study from Joanna McKay incorporates previously unavailable archive material and focuses on some of the most challenging, ever-present tasks for the GDR leaders. In particular, she examines how they approached explaining the division with West Germany without undermining the legitimacy of the GDR.

The Formation of the Soviet Union
The Formation of the Soviet Union

Author: Richard Pipes

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 1997-04-25

Total Pages: 398

ISBN-13: 067441764X

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Here is the history of the disintegration of the Russian Empire, and the emergence, on its ruins, of a multinational Communist state. In this revealing account, Richard Pipes tells how the Communists exploited the new nationalism of the peoples of the Ukraine, Belorussia, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and the Volga-Ural area--first to seize power and then to expand into the borderlands. The Formation of the Soviet Union acquires special relevance in the post-Soviet era, when the ethnic groups described in the book once again reclaimed their independence, this time apparently for good. In a 1996 Preface to the Revised Edition, Pipes suggests how material recently released from the Russian archives might supplement his account.

Dangerous Language — Esperanto and the Decline of Stalinism
Dangerous Language — Esperanto and the Decline of Stalinism

Author: Ulrich Lins

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2017-02-09

Total Pages: 201

ISBN-13: 1352000202

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This is Volume 2 of Dangerous Language. This book examines the rise of the international language Esperanto, launched in 1887 as a proposed a solution to national conflicts and a path to a more tolerant world. The chapters in this volume examine the position of Esperanto in Eastern Europe during the Cold War; in particular it explores Stalin’s final years and the gradual re-emergence of the Esperanto movement. At first, its revival was limited to the satellite countries, especially Bulgaria and Poland, but, with Stalinism’s gradual retreat, Esperanto organizations reappeared in most East European countries and eventually in the Soviet Union itself. The progress was uneven, and its details reveal the stresses and strains that became apparent as the solidarity of the Soviet bloc declined. This book will appeal to a wide readership, including linguists, historians, political scientists and others interested in the history of the twentieth century from the unusual perspective of language. This volume is complemented by the sister volume Dangerous Language — Esperanto under Hitler and Stalin which offers a concentration on the creation and early emergence of Esperanto as an international language.

Ossi Wessi
Ossi Wessi

Author: Donald Backman

Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing

Published: 2009-10-02

Total Pages: 285

ISBN-13: 1443815195

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Ossi Wessi includes the proceedings of the fourteenth annual Interdisciplinary German Studies Conference at the University of California, Berkeley (2006), which explored issues surrounding the Berlin Wall, both pre- and post-reunification, in language, literature, and visual media. The collected articles discuss the situation of the Berlin Wall, describing its portrayal as both a dividing and uniting boundary, and often discussing the continued existence of the Wall in the minds of Germany’s citizens. The multi-disciplinary range of approaches contained in this volume reveals how diverse the portrayals of the history of the Wall have been, as well as how controversial the division of Germany remains today. Topics covered in this collection include Wende Literature and film, linguistic changes and attitudes since 1989, the complicated history of the Neo-Nazis, and the visual arts. Although Ossi Wessi is by no means a comprehensive reference work, each of its essays serve as a though provoking springboard for further research.

The Primacy of Politics
The Primacy of Politics

Author: Sheri Berman

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2006-08-07

Total Pages: 219

ISBN-13: 1139457594

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Political history in the industrial world has indeed ended, argues this pioneering study, but the winner has been social democracy - an ideology and political movement that has been as influential as it has been misunderstood. Berman looks at the history of social democracy from its origins in the late nineteenth century to today and shows how it beat out competitors such as classical liberalism, orthodox Marxism, and its cousins, Fascism and National Socialism by solving the central challenge of modern politics - reconciling the competing needs of capitalism and democracy. Bursting on to the scene in the interwar years, the social democratic model spread across Europe after the Second World War and formed the basis of the postwar settlement. This is a study of European social democracy that rewrites the intellectual and political history of the modern era while putting contemporary debates about globalization in their proper intellectual and historical context.