Postmodernism & Deutschland 83

Postmodernism & Deutschland 83

Media Magazine - A Postmodern Reimagining of the Past

Media Magazine 73 has a feature exploring Deutschland 83 as a postmodern media product. Read ‘Deutschland 83 - A Postmodern Reimagining of the Past’ in MM73  (p18). You'll find our Media Magazine archive here - remember you'll need your Greenford Google login to access. Answer the following questions:

1) What were the classic media representations of the Cold War?

Representations of Cold War-era Germany often fit a stereotypical binary ‘good vs evil’ The Cold War – the state of tension and hostility between the Soviet bloc countries and the West from 1945 to 1990 – has inspired a series of film and media texts within the spy genre. These texts often present the East and West as  binary opposites through codes and conventions. These texts traditionally offer a pro-West ‘them versus us/ good versus evil’ ideological viewpoint through their narratives and how characters are represented.

2) Why does Deutschland 83 provide a particularly good example for postmodern analysis?

Deutschland 83 however is not your typical Cold War text for a number of reasons but perhaps the most significant is that it has a young Stasi officer as its main protagonist. It is an example of a text that reimagines the past by blurring the established views of the Cold War through a postmodern treatment.

3) Pick out some of the aspects of the opening of episode 1 and explain why they are significant.

Lenora and another senior Stasi official are heard talking about sending Martin to spy on General Edel in West Germany because it is believed that he is working with the United States. The choice is made to replicate the tense, introspective conversations that characterise 1980s offices, perfectly simulating and pastiching the era.

4) How does the party scene at Martin's mum's house subvert stereotypes of East Germany in the Cold War?

The house party scene reimagines the representation of the East beyond the operators of the restrictive state to the humanity, care and affection of everyday family and friends. The vibrant youth camaraderie, anthemic rock music and positivity are in contrast to Lenora who represents the callous manipulative officialdom that is more stereotypically present in representations of East Germany.

5) What aspects of the episode set in West Germany offer postmodern elements?

Martin’s first glimpse of West Germany connotes western opulence – a chandelier, the lavishly colourful images of Gustav Klimt’s painting ‘The Kiss’ strategically placed within the wide shot. However, Martin’s first taste of western consumerism, in the supermarket scene is playfully underscored by the Eurythmics 1980’s pop song ‘Sweet Dreams are Made of This’ as Martin wonders at the volume and choice of products available in the West.

6) Finally, how does the article apply postmodern theory to Deutschland 83 and link it to the potential target audience?

We cannot know for certain how Eastern and Western Europeans behaved during this time – what we are seeing is only a reimagining and one that is influenced by the present. According to postmodern theorist Baudrillard, Simulacra reveal that there is no fixed, absolute truth; and Deutschland 83 certainly challenges our preconceptions of this period of history.

Postmodernism Factsheet

Go to our Media Factsheet archive on the Media Shared drive and open Factsheet #54: Introduction to Postmodernism. Our Media Factsheet archive is on the Media Shared drive: M:\Resources\A Level\Media Factsheets. If you need to access this from home you can find our factsheet archive here (you'll need to use your Greenford login).

1) Read the section on Strinati's five ways to define post modernity. What examples are provided of the breakdown of the distinction between culture and society (media-isation)?

• The characters Bruno and Borat have more ‘reality’ for film audiences than their creator Sacha Baron Cohen. Cohen’s films rely on the fact that the characters he creates are seen as ‘real’ people and he is able to get away with saying and doing things that a ‘real’ person could not.

2) What is Fredric Jameson's idea of 'historical deafness'? How can the idea of 'historical deafness' be applied to Deutschland 83?

It can be applied as many people wouldn't have known about the division of Germany and the Cold War, and by watching D83, people would have an understanding of the history through the media product.

3) What examples and theories are provided for the idea of 'style over substance'?

• People are strongly influenced by branding when buying products. The label sometimes becomes more important than the product itself and packaging more important than the contents. People will pay high prices for products which bear the logo of a fashionable label regardless of the actual quality of the product.
• The modern rise of celebrities launched through reality television programmes such as Big Brother can be seen as the culture celebrating style over substance. Many celebrities are now famous for being famous rather than for an identifiable talent or ability.

4) What examples from music are provided for the breakdown of the distinction between art and popular culture? Can this be applied to Deutschland 83?

In postmodern culture, Andy Warhol created multi-coloured prints of the Campbell’s soup cans which was very popular. It was similarly shown in the supermarket scene where the shelves are filled with neatly and bright products. It is said to be 'Warholesque'. 

5) What is bricolage? What examples of bricolage can be found in Deutschland 83?

Bricolage refers to the process of adapting and juxtaposing old and new texts, images, ideas or narratives to produce whole new meanings. One scene where bricolage could be found is where Martin has to learn words of the West where 'plaste' is 'plastik' (logo of west side is bricolage as it has lego format crossed with pop culture, intertextual reference).

6) How can the audience pleasures of Deutschland 83 be linked to postmodernism? Read 'The decline of meta-narratives' and 'Media texts and the postmodern' to help answer this.

Meta-narratives (or grand narratives (Lyotard) literally meaning ‘big stories’) are the ideas and concepts that have been used to attempt to explain the way the world is and the way it should be. Human history is full of these grand narratives from religion to political/economic theories. Communism, Fascism, Liberalism and Socialism are some examples of grand narratives that have been applied in various contexts in the last 100 years. In postmodern society it is argued that people no longer believe there are absolute ways to explain reality.

7) Now look at page 4 of the factsheet. How does Deutschland 83 demonstrate aspects of the postmodern in its construction and ideological positioning?

Since Deutschland 83 is based on actual events, some viewers may find themselves reliving those bygone days. This series uses hyper-reality and carefully constructed emotions to create fictional characters that embody postmodernism.

8) Which key scenes from Deutschland 83 best provide examples of postmodernism? Why?

One of the key scenes from D83 that's a good example of postmodernism is the supermarket scene, Martin, working undercover in the West, discovers a perfectly stocked and shelved aisle that pays homage to popular pop artist Andy Warhol while simultaneously playing a song that wasn't even released at the time.