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The People's State

East German Society from Hitler to Honecker
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The People's State offers a profound exploration of life in the East German dictatorship, moving beyond familiar Cold War narratives to reveal the ordinary, everyday experiences of its citizens. Drawing on newly available GDR archives, Mary Fulbrook charts the transformation from Nazi Germany's aftermath to a modern industrial state, highlighting how individuals perceived their rights and shaped their existence within a 'participatory dictatorship'.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$7699
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book is ideal for readers interested in modern European history, Cold War studies, and social history, as well as those seeking a nuanced understanding of East German society beyond totalitarian stereotypes.

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What was life really like for East Germans, effectively imprisoned behind the Iron Curtain? This book explores the transformation of East German society from the ruins of Hitler's Third Reich to a modernizing industrial state. It also examines changing conceptions of normality within an authoritarian political system.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

An insight into the experience of life within the East German dictatorship

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 modernizing industrial state. She examines changing conceptions of normality within an authoritarian political system and provides extraordinary insights into the ways in which individuals perceived their rights and actively sought to shape their own lives.

Replacing the simplistic black-and-white concept of totalitarianism by the notion of a participatory dictatorship, The People's State seeks to reinstate the East German people as actors in their own history.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Reviews commend the book as a fresh, thoughtful, and highly readable account that restores East Germans as active participants in their own history. Praised for its rich detail and unique perspective, it is seen as a valuable contribution to the social history of post-war Europe and an excellent basis for further debate on East Germany's socialist experiment.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780300144246

Publisher: Yale University Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 15 October 2008

Country: United States

Imprint: Yale University Press

Illustration: 12 b-w illus.

Audience: Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Width: 156.0mm

Height: 235.0mm

Weight: 581g

Pages: 352

About the Author

MARY FULBROOK is professor of German history at University College London. Among her books is the best-selling A Concise History of Germany.

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