1.) Introduction: After the devastation caused by the World Wars, many nations were looking for ways to improve the living standards of their citizens. Many countries found that the creation of large amounts of jobs and abundant state spending helped improve these living standards throughout all ranks of society. In opposition to these beliefs, the Soviet East Bloc continued to crack down hard on their citizens and limit the reforms implemented within their society, yet the nation still had moderate success (not to the extent of other European nations). After these reforms were suddenly cut by right-wing Conservative politicians, many citizens took a stance in wishing to control government in their way (feminists, Green Party, new-right supporters, etc.). Germany was separated by the Berlin Wall during this period. This wall separated the Communist East from the Democratic West. Each of these sides had drastic differences between one another even though they were divided only by a concrete block.
Unit Objective: Explain the differences between the Soviet East Bloc and the rest of Western Europe, mainly the Democratic West Bloc of Germany.
EQ: What internal and external factors weakened communist power in the East Bloc, and how did Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev try to reform the system from above?
- The citizens if the East Bloc were limited in their freedoms - personal and political. Life within the East Bloc was significantly below that of the western civilizations and had not lived up to the utopia of which it was promised to be. The Eastern Bloc citizens were not blind to this knowledge and were growing tired of living in a sub-par world. Gorbachev came along and implemented reforms meant to help the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc advance in worldly standing. His most popular reforms, perestroika and glasnost, were both very popular with the Russians and very effective in government.
2.)
Gorbachev was touched upon lightly in the Essential Question, but that did not do him the justice he deserves. Gorbachev was a Communist who readily embraced new ideas, and this allowed him to move the Soviet Union forward during the postwar era. His reforms (perestroika and glasnost) were key players in the advancement of the Soviet Union. Gorbachev, as well, moved towards making the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc more democratic, which would allow them to relate with westerners more and potentially reach the same level of advancement as the rest of Europe. (Page 984-985)
Lech Walesa started off his life doing much of nothing besides becoming an army corporal. He worked in shipyards until he was fired in 1976 because of his activities as a shop steward. Walesa led a group of workers to organize and create a free and democratic trade union called Solidarity. This did not bode well with state security, for he was constantly kept under watch and jailed many times. In 1980, he led the Gdansk shipyard strike in Poland which led to various other strikes throughout the country where Walesa was seen as the spark and the leader. He was supported wholeheartedly in his acts by the Pope and was eventually elected the Solidarity Chairman at the First National Solidarity Congress in Gdansk. He eventually won the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts and in December 1990, he was elected President of the Republic of Poland. He served until his defeat in 1995. (Page 982-983)
Boris Yeltsin was the President of Russia, serving from 1991 to 1999. He originally supported his friend Mikhail Gorbachev, but when the perestroika reform came to fruition, he turned the opposite direction and became Gorbachev's most dangerous political opponent. Yeltsin was considered a radical reform communist who deeply wished to embrace democratic reforms to help advance Soviet culture. In May of 1990, he was elected the parliamentary leader of the Russian Soviet Republic. With this election, he announced that Russia would focus solely on its own interests and put the needs of other countries on the back burner. He then declared that Russia would remove itself from the Soviet Union. Gorbachev then attempted to re-form the Soviet Union under a weaker, looser, freely accepted confederation, but six of the fifteen Soviet republics rejected the idea. Gorbachev was also kidnapped by a group of "hardliners", to which Yeltsin responded by denouncing the rebels atop a tank and declaring the "rebirth of Russia". Gorbachev was rescued and Yeltsin then went on to outlaw Communism. (Page 990-991)
3.)
The Apollo Program: First Man on the Moon
On May 25, 1961, United States President John F. Kennedy proposed the national goal of "landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth" by the end of the 1960's. This goal was accomplished on Apollo Mission 11 with the astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. On July 20, 1969, these two men landed their Lunar Module on the Moon and were the first men to walk on its surface. This was important to this chapter mainly because of the Cold War conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union. These two nations battled to see who could reach space first, with the Soviet Union getting into outer space first and the United States landing people on the Moon first.
The Mid-1960's Hippie Movement
The United States had a movement similar to that of Europe's New Left movement. Both of these groups wished for a government that was more based on the rights of the people and less based on political advancement. The Hippie political thought was characterized by it's anti-Vietnam War thoughts, pro-Gay rights, and largely feminist beliefs. Those who were considered Hippies were also attributed to drug use and sexual openness, much like those of the New Left. Hippies were unafraid to voice their opinions which led to a strong hatred from many people, but this openness also showed how dedicated to their cause they were, and it brought in many more supporters.
Picturing the Past
The Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall is the most notorious figure of this time period. It is known for dividing Germany into two sectors - the West Bloc and the East Bloc. The Western Bloc was of democratic rule and the eastern bloc was of communist rule. Many people hated the Wall when it was erected on August 13, 1961 by East Germany in help keep the Soviets in and the westerners out. The Wall made emigration/immigration very tough throughout the course of its existence. Many consider November 9, 1989 to be the official date of destruction for the Berlin Wall.
5.)
1st Connection: The Cold War has ended between the United States and Russia, yet the feelings between the countries are still unclear. Various news sites consider Russia an ally, while others still consider them "a nation to be frightened about". Russia has yet to show any significant change in leadership, for many people believe that their "democracy" is not really a democracy, but simply a dictatorship shaped to seem like the citizens really have a say in the matter. The reforms implemented during the postwar era seem to have broken down and withered into nothing.
2nd Connection: The Berlin Wall has fallen and the two sides of Germany have become one again. They have integrated back together well, for the most part. There are still differences between culture, wealth, political beliefs, etc. Even with these differences, Germany was once again united into one nation that is climbing back up and becoming one of the world's superpowers once again. Germany can never fall down for too long; it seems whenever she crumbles, she rises right back to the top.
6.)
"Drowning Girl" by Roy Lichtenstein (1963)
The pop art era was considered to go against traditional artistic values. The British looked at American pop art and generally laughed, for they did not consider it much art at all. This goes well with the New Left/Hippie movement in the way that it goes against the social norms of the time and does whatever it wishes it order to achieve its artist vision.
Title and Artist Unknown (1972)
Graffiti is a art-style that many do not consider art, mainly for the method that people choose to show off their talent. People use walls, buildings and various other flat surfaces to display their work and this goes against many laws - mainly ones of vandalizing property. This relates to the chapter because the Berlin Wall was COVERED in graffiti. This showed people's anger towards the communist regime and how they wished for Germany to be one again.
7.)
3.
- Germany was divided into 2 sections, a Democratic one and a Communist one.
- I had no idea that Europe had its own Hippie group - the New Left.
- I also never knew that Gorbachev was kidnapped, I'd figure something like that would be more widely known.
2.
- The counterculture movement (New Left) and how similar they were to the Hippies. Things like that always spark my interest.
- The effect that the civil rights movement had all around the world is astonishing. I never knew that its influence spread from nation to nation.
1.
- Like I mentioned before, how Russia seems to be democratic, I really want to know if they are. That's not exactly something one could read up on and research, but it would involve deeper investigation. The result would be interesting nonetheless.
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