Mary Fulbrook

"Arising from the unpromising ashes of defeated Nazi Germany, the two Germanies came to represent opposing modes of state and society. The Federal Republic established itself as a remarkably stable democracy and successful social market economy; the German Democratic Republic developed an apparently exemplary form of 'actually existing socialism' and became a pillar of the Soviet bloc. Then, with the 'gentle revolution' of 1989 in East Germany, came the sudden and unexpected collapse of Communist rule. With rapid reunification, the united Germany of 1990 faced new challenges as the unprecedented transformation created a multitude of economic problems and social tensions." "In this fully revised and updated edition, Mary Fulbrook charts a path through the major topics and areas of debate, taking account of recent developments in contemporary German history."--BOOK JACKET.

"Covering all major aspects of German history from the Weimar Republic through reunification, this new book offers a remarkably rich, insightful survey of a difficult and controversial subject. It integrates East German history more fully than any previous account, offering a precisely nuanced picture of life in the GDR and a compelling account of the roots of the 1989 revolution, and incorporates the latest research in social and economic history to deepen and vivify the political narrative. A unique advantage is its full, and fully accessible, examination of current historiographical debates in the field. Comprehensive, cogent, and judiciously balanced, The Divided Nation will become the standard reference on this important subject."--Jacket.

Throughout Europe longstanding ideas of what it means to be a citizen are being challenged. The sense of belonging to a nation has never been more in flux. Simultaneously, nationalistic and racist movements are gaining ground and barriers are being erected against immigration. Citizenship, Nationality and Migration in Europe examines how concepts of citizenship have evolved in different countries and varying contexts. It explores the interconnection between ideas of the nation, modes of citizenship and the treatment of migrants. Adopting a distinctive multi-disciplinary and international approach, this collection brings together leading experts from several fields including political studies, history, law and sociology. By juxtaposing four European countries - Britain, France, Germany and Italy - and setting current trends against a historical background it highlights important differences and exposes similarities in the urgent questions surrounding citizenship and the treatment of minorities in Europe today.

For roughly the first decade after the demise of the GDR, professional and popular interpretations of East German history concentrated primarily on forms of power and repression, as well as on dissent and resistance to communist rule. Socio-cultural approaches have increasingly shown that a single-minded emphasis on repression and coercion fails to address a number of important historical issues, including those related to the subjective experiences of those who lived under communist regimes. With that in mind, the essays in this volume explore significant physical and psychological aspects of life in the GDR, such as health and diet, leisure and dining, memories of the Nazi past, as well as identity, sports, and experiences of everyday humiliation. Situating the GDR within a broader historical context, they open up new ways of interpreting life behind the Iron Curtain - while providing a devastating critique of misleading mainstream scholarship, which continues to portray the GDR in the restrictive terms of totalitarian theory."--pub. desc.

"What was life really like for East Germans, effectively imprisoned behind the Iron Curtain? The headline stories of Cold War spies and surveillance by the secret police, of political repression and corruption, do not tell the whole story. After the unification of Germany in 1990 many East Germans remembered their lives as interesting, varied and full of educational, career and leisure opportunities: in many ways 'perfectly ordinary lives'." "Using the rich resources of the newly opened GDR archives, Mary Fulbrook investigates these conflicting narratives. She explores the transformation of East German society from the ruins of Hitler's Third Reich to a modernising industrial state, analysing changing social conditions and providing extraordinary insights into the ways in which individuals actively sought to shape their own lives."--Jacket.

Provides a crisp synthesis of a vast array of historical material, and explores the interrelationships between social, political and cultural factors in the light of scholarly controversies.

Founded on the ruins of Hitler's defeated Third Reich, and lacking any intrinsic legitimacy, the German Democratic Republic nevertheless became the most stable and successful state in the Soviet bloc. Yet in the 'gentle revolution' of 1989 it collapsed with startling speed. How can this extraordinary story of political stability followed by sudden implosion be explained? With the opening of the East German archives, it is at last possible to look inside the apparently impregnable dictatorship. Mary Fulbrook provides a compelling interpretation of structures of power and patterns of popular opinion within the GDR. This absorbing study explores the ways in which the tentacles of the all-pervading state captured East German society in the grip of Stasi, party, and mass organizations, and analyses the emergence in the 1980s of oppositional cultures under the ambivalent shelter of a Protestant Church which had come to terms with the communist state.