Stasiland by Anna Funder is a text which explores how the communist regime of the former GDR has had a lasting impact on its people. Funder examines the history of Germany, noting the lingering effect that the Stasi had on its victims, as many of them were unable to recover from their past and move into the future, whilst also exploring how the fall of East Germany caused many members of the Stasi to become trapped in their memories of what once was.
Funders own understanding of the the GDR and its history changes throughout the text. In response to the letter from the Armenian, Funder wishes to seek out singular events in history in order to “show some of the stories” of “resistance to the dictatorship”. When she is refused permission by …show more content…
Despite being part of “an ordinary family”, she was targeted and blackmailed by the stasi for having a foreign boyfriend, resulting in her living a life defined by “falling into the gap between the GDR’s fiction and its reality”. At the fault of the Stasi, Julia was unable to “conform to the fiction” and was “edged out of the reality” of the GDR, resulting in her having no place to exist in Germany. Furthermore, the collapse of East Germany had further impact on Julia, as she was raped “just after the wall fell” by a “prisoner that [was] held in the GDR”. After being tormented in the GDR, and failed by unified Germany, Julia becomes “separated from everyone, again”. As Julia doesn’t belong in either Germany she is seen as being only “part-attached” to the world. Her inability to move on, and the impact that the Stasi and the collapse of the GDR had on her is also heightened by Anna’s direct comparison of herself to Julia. As they were “born in the same year” and lived in “parallel universes”, the reader is able to view the impact that the GDR had on its people as Julia is “unable to go forward into her future” whereas Anna is a successful writer with “relative luck in life”, this displays that some victims of the Stasi are still unable to fully succeed in the new, unified Germany. The East German regime had a lasting impact on its former …show more content…
Funder uses Herr Winz to show the impact that the fall of communism had on lower ranking members of the Stasi. Winz is “waiting for the second coming of socialism”, and attempts to persuade Anna that communism is better than capitalism by giving her a copy of “The Communist Manifesto”. At the fall of the GDR, Winz lost the power that he had over the community as a Stasi member, yet he “still wants to play spy games” and requests to see her ID, in an attempt to regain some of that power. In comparison to this, Herr Christian seems nostalgic for the legal system and strict rules of the GDR as he is “a stickler for the law”. He claims joining the Stasi seemed “the right thing to do”, showing how he viewed GDR as an effective and fair system. Christian seems to miss the chance to uphold strict rules, as is reflected by his choice in profession as a private investigator which is “pretty much the same job”. Although they were not victims of the Stasi, both Herr Winz and Herr Christian were impacted strongly by the fall of the GDR, resulting in them being unable to fully move on in unified
Funders own understanding of the the GDR and its history changes throughout the text. In response to the letter from the Armenian, Funder wishes to seek out singular events in history in order to “show some of the stories” of “resistance to the dictatorship”. When she is refused permission by …show more content…
Despite being part of “an ordinary family”, she was targeted and blackmailed by the stasi for having a foreign boyfriend, resulting in her living a life defined by “falling into the gap between the GDR’s fiction and its reality”. At the fault of the Stasi, Julia was unable to “conform to the fiction” and was “edged out of the reality” of the GDR, resulting in her having no place to exist in Germany. Furthermore, the collapse of East Germany had further impact on Julia, as she was raped “just after the wall fell” by a “prisoner that [was] held in the GDR”. After being tormented in the GDR, and failed by unified Germany, Julia becomes “separated from everyone, again”. As Julia doesn’t belong in either Germany she is seen as being only “part-attached” to the world. Her inability to move on, and the impact that the Stasi and the collapse of the GDR had on her is also heightened by Anna’s direct comparison of herself to Julia. As they were “born in the same year” and lived in “parallel universes”, the reader is able to view the impact that the GDR had on its people as Julia is “unable to go forward into her future” whereas Anna is a successful writer with “relative luck in life”, this displays that some victims of the Stasi are still unable to fully succeed in the new, unified Germany. The East German regime had a lasting impact on its former …show more content…
Funder uses Herr Winz to show the impact that the fall of communism had on lower ranking members of the Stasi. Winz is “waiting for the second coming of socialism”, and attempts to persuade Anna that communism is better than capitalism by giving her a copy of “The Communist Manifesto”. At the fall of the GDR, Winz lost the power that he had over the community as a Stasi member, yet he “still wants to play spy games” and requests to see her ID, in an attempt to regain some of that power. In comparison to this, Herr Christian seems nostalgic for the legal system and strict rules of the GDR as he is “a stickler for the law”. He claims joining the Stasi seemed “the right thing to do”, showing how he viewed GDR as an effective and fair system. Christian seems to miss the chance to uphold strict rules, as is reflected by his choice in profession as a private investigator which is “pretty much the same job”. Although they were not victims of the Stasi, both Herr Winz and Herr Christian were impacted strongly by the fall of the GDR, resulting in them being unable to fully move on in unified