Oppression and Scarcity The History and Institutional Structure of the Marxist-Leninist Government of East Germany and Some Perspectives on Life in a Socialist System

Subjects:

• History » European History -- Modern/20th Century
• Multicultural Studies » Slavic Studies

Reviews:

• According to the American newsreels and TV shows, life under Marxist-Leninist governments was composed primarily of wearing drab clothing, standing in long lines for survival rations, and being thrown into gulags at various points in the life-cycle. In this second volume in his series, Sperlich replaces these rather simple-minded perceptions with the realities and practicalities of life in East Germany before reunification. He explains how Germany was partitioned and how allied policies moved from the four-zone to the two-state systems, the beginnings of government structure, politics in terms of the party, the state and citizenship, reforms and failure in economics due to rigidity, and the influence of public opinion and public discourse. He closes with reflections on life under socialism, including the practice of religion, cultural life, and how the customer is always wrong, and closes with an analysis of the end of the socialist experiment.
  —Reference & Research Book News May 2006

• Endorsement From James Gregor
  University of California, Berkeley: Professor Peter Sperlich has provided a particularly instructive history of East Germany's Marxist-Leninist government with all its betrayal and promise--together with its final disillusionment and failure. He has provided an eminently informative, memorable and engaging record of arresting tragedy. It is recommended to all who would truly understand a significant part of the history of the twentieth century.
• Endorsement From Steve L. Coombs, retired
  Cleveland State University: The meaning for human lives of the Marxist-Leninist states is a central topic in the history of the twentieth century. Professor Sperlich's meticulously researched account of the German Democratic Republic is a valuable contribution to that understanding....Sperlich's work draws heavily on previously unexamined primary sources, for some of which the very existence was previously unknown, and it will serve as a landmark for those who come after him. The perseverance and dedication required to overcome the myriad obstacles must have been very substantiated indeed. The cumulative impact of Sperlich's work is made the more compelling by his purely factual and dispassionate presentation, eschewing rhetorical flourishes. He writes with precision and with clarity, allowing the readers to discover for themselves the profoundly inhuman character of the defunct regime.

Table of Contents:

• Introduction
• The Partitioning of Germany and Allied Policies
• Beginnings and Governmental Structure
• Politics: Party, State, and Citizen
• Economics: Reforms, Rigidity, and Failure
• Persuasion and Non-Persuasion: Public Opinion and Public Discourse
• Life in East Germany: Some Vignettes
• The End of the GDR: Revolution and Reunification
• Bibliography
• Index

PDF Catalogs:
Academic Library Spring 2008.pdf	Greenwood History Spring 2008.pdf