Ostalgia: definition and explanation |

It is a phenomenon that arose after reunification and nostalgically remembers the GDR or wishes it back. The retrospective loyalty is shaped by experiences and values ​​from the GDR era, which were often only perceived so positively much later because there was largely no uniform GDR identity before reunification.

Since there is no clear definition for the term, it is considered to be very flexible and can encompass a general Eastern identity, an Eastern German mentality or even a new Eastern German self-confidence. The term was first used in public life by cabaret artist Uwe Steimle, whose program from 1992 was called «Ostalgie».

Background of the Ostalgia

After reunification, i.e. the accession of the GDR to the Federal Republic of Germany, the former East German population in particular faced a complicated transformation process. The existing state structures were dissolved within a relatively short period of time and a general adaptation to the political, economic, legal and social system of the Federal Republic had to take place.

Even if this transition process is usually classified as successful from a political and economic point of view, the development after reunification was also characterized by losses and great disappointment for many East Germans. After many of the prospects for the future, especially economic ones, did not materialize, in the early 1990s some parts of the former East German population became increasingly averse to the FRG. At the same time, the nostalgic longing for the GDR times set in, which should continue to this day.

Manifestation and course of the nostalgia

The emergence of the Ostalgie included a widespread recognition of many everyday habits and products of the GDR, most of which disappeared from the lives of most with the accession to the Federal Republic of Germany. Particularly typical products from the era of consumer society under Erich Honecker experienced a renaissance.

media

As a central medium, many films and television shows in the 1990s and 2000s drew on the emerging nostalgia. The film «Sonnenallee», released in 1999, served GDR nostalgia so successfully that other so-called wall comedies followed. In addition to films such as «Herr Lehmann», «Kleinruppin forever» or the particularly successful «Goodbye Lenin», television programs such as the «Ostalgie Show» or «Ein Kessel DDR», which recreated everyday life in the GDR, were also very popular.

The comic magazine «Mosaik» and the cult «Eastern Sandman» also returned in the course of the Ostalgic heyday.

Food

At the beginning of the 1990s, there were classic East products on the market again, which were no longer seen as cheap copies of Western products, as they were in the GDR era, but were celebrated as authentic originals from «confessed East brands».

Former bestsellers such as the chocolate-like sweet «Bambina» have made a big comeback in modernized forms adapted to current consumer demands. Spreewald gherkins and Halloren balls also quickly became bestsellers. With their high recognition value, the products appealed to the memories and experiences of East Germans, so that Ostalgie became an extremely successful advertising strategy.

Symbols and cult products

Many other iconic objects and symbols of the GDR were also rediscovered. For example, pioneer clothing, the Trabbi (also Trabi), prefab buildings, old East German interiors or the East German traffic light man were seen as an anchor of identity for the former East German society and stylized back into commercial products.

Ostalgia as a lifestyle

In addition to the many products that represented the emerging Ostalgia, there were also Ostalgie hotels and accommodations, which presented themselves as the solution to the longing for the GDR with their furnishings and kitchen.

Ostalgie parties in private and public spaces are also becoming increasingly popular. Mostly GDR-typical clothing or even uniforms were worn and the premises were equipped with former SED or GDR articles such as little flags, banners, portraits or medals.

The music was also based on East German hits or pop songs, or modified versions of socialist workers’ and struggle songs were played. Here, too, the success was so great that there were professional organizers who toured the new federal states and organized Ostalgie parties.

Ostalgia today

Although living standards in the new federal states have risen since reunification, the GDR is increasingly viewed more positively there. While the East German population judged the GDR largely negatively immediately after reunification, today it performs better than the FRG, especially in relation to social policy. This is mainly associated with the great disappointment of many people in East Germany, for whom reunification was marked by losses and failures. This disillusionment, which goes hand in hand with a tendency to reject the FRG, is still the basis for the nostalgic longing for the GDR.

controversy and criticism

Ever since the phenomenon of nostalgia has become more widespread, there has been repeated sharp criticism. The central argument is that the Ostalgie as a positive longing for the past ignores the sometimes fatal socio-political, economic and social conditions in the GDR or even unduly glosses over them. In the eyes of many critics, this is a completely inappropriate retrospective glorification of an inhuman, unjust state.

On the other hand, there is the equally widespread assumption that Ostalgie is not about a missing misanthropic dictatorship, but rather about the search for an anchor of identity. The people from the former GDR went through a radical and often disappointing change in life, which made many feel devalued and alienated in their own country. For them, the nostalgia is therefore considered a processing strategy that makes it possible to retain and share experiences, memories, norms and values ​​from their previous life.