German Ostalgie has largely run its course according to a recent poll commissioned by Deutsche Welle, Germany’s international broadcaster. Deutsche Welle aims at audiences outside of Germany and is available via television, radio and the Internet.
What is Ostalgie?
“Ostalgie” is a hybrid word that popped up following German reunification in 1990. It implies nostalgia for the former east and a longing for a prior way of life. After having been absorbed by, but not totally integrated into, West Germany, many former East Germans began to fondly recall the “bad” old days. They felt nostalgic toward certain aspects of their former lives that had suddenly disappeared: They felt a loss of community and equality; they missed certain foods that were no longer stocked; GDR-themed (East German) items became popular http://www.walled-in-berlin.com/j-elke-ertle/ampelmaennchen-former-east-berliners/and http://www.walled-in-berlin.com/j-elke-ertle/ampelmann-to-marry-ampelfrau/; memoirs of growing up Ossi (Eastern) began to fill bookstore shelves, they missed familiar television shows; and a general yearning for the lost socialist system of government developed.
Ostalgie turned into cash – Ampelmann Shop in Berlin-Mitte with the beloved East German traffic light man as a theme. photo © J. Elke Ertle, 2015
An example of Ostalgie was the 2003 German blockbuster movie, “Good- Bye Lenin.” In this fictional story, a young man tries to keep political reality from his mother after she suffered a serious heart attack and coma. His mother, a dedicated socialist, experienced the coronary event just before the fall of the Wall. When her doctor suggests that the slightest upset might cause another, possibly fatal, heart attack, the son invents elaborate schemes to sustain his mother’s illusion that the German Democratic Republic still exists. When the mother unexpectedly wanders outside while the son is asleep, she sees the giant statue of Lenin being helicoptered away (to read about the real-life fate of the Lenin statue, visit http://walled-in-berlin.com/j-elke-ertle/comrade-lenin-is-back/)
Has Ostalgie run its course?
Twenty-six years later, the answer is – Mostly. The use of terms like “Ossis” for East Germans and “Wessis” for West Germans – so common after reunification – has greatly decreased. In September 2015, Deutsche Welle commissioned a survey to find out how Germans see their society 25 years after reunification. http://www.dw.com/en/dw-poll-united-but-not-yet-one/a-18740932 The pollsters questioned more than 1,000 Germans aged 18 and older about their attitude toward reunification. They found the younger generation to be more positive about the reunification than their parents and grandparents. The 45-59-age-group is the least satisfied. Seventy-nine percent of 18-29 year olds (born just before or after reunification) think that German reunification was an overall success while 69% of 45-59 year olds (in their twenties and thirties when the wall came down) agreed. When asked whether German reunification brought them personal advantages or disadvantages, 65% of 18-29-year-olds saw mainly advantages while 14% saw chiefly disadvantages. In the 45-59-age-group, 53% perceived primarily advantages while 21% saw predominantly disadvantages.
Overall, 90% of the 18-29-age-group felt that Germany’s reunification set a good example for other countries, while 77% in the 45-59-group felt that way. Differences between responses from the former East and West had decreased. It appears that the former East/West divide no longer shapes people’s identity and that Ostalgie is largely a thing of the past.
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Walled-In is my story of growing up in Berlin during the Cold War. Juxtaposing the events that engulfed Berlin during the Berlin Blockade, the Berlin Airlift, the Berlin Wall and Kennedy’s Berlin visit with the struggle against my equally insurmountable parental walls, Walled-In is about freedom vs. conformity, conflict vs. harmony, domination vs. submission, loyalty vs. betrayal.
