Warda Zaabat

Elective: Censorship And Social Transformation

Ksenia Robbe

29-03-2015

Word count: 1001

BA, International Studies

Deceiving For Her Wellbeing

      Goodbye Lenin is a movie that is set in a historical context and took place after WWII, from 1989 until 1991. The movie is directed by Wolfgang Becker and released in 2003. The main protagonist is Alexander Kerner and the supporting are his socialist mother Christiane, his girlfriend Lara, his sister Ariane and his friend from West-Germany Denis. When one does not understanding the historical background one can perceive the movie as a mere drama-comedy film, while one that is acquainted with these historical events would look beyond the entertainment. Alexander once loved his socialist East Berlin and hoped he could represent his country when he would grow up and become a cosmonaut. However, as he grew up under the socialist regime, he became to see that the GDR does not share his socio-political ideologies. While Alexander is anti-GDR, his mother feels a great devotion to her socialist East-Berlin. Becker tries to present the fall of the Berlin wall and GDR by showing how these events have effected one single family wherein the government and the citizens are portrayed in the form of Alexander and Christiane. Hence that is why we can see  Good-Bye, Lennin! as example of how censorship leads the lives of ordinary folks. Does censorship protect its citizens, Christiane, from the truth?

     As Alexander is determined to protect his mother from another heart attack by reconstruct historical events and by creating a false reality. When Christiane gains consciousness the doctor warns the two siblings, Alexander and Ariane, that the slightest shock could be fatal for Christiane. That is why Alexander decides to keep the fall of the Berlin wall and the GDR a secret from her as this could trigger some anxiety. Alexander goes beyond lying. He does not merely hide the truth, instead Alexander makes himself guilty of deception, suppression and censorship.

     While Christiane does not have any clue about the current situation and that her beloved East-Berlin has transformed from a once socialist country to a reunified capitalist Germany, she still believes firmly that socialism is the best socio-political answer for her nation. While Alexander does not share the same ideologies as the GDR and protests against their policies, he practices the same strategic propaganda as the government. For instance, as Christiane is getting stronger, she wants to watch television and wants to have a walk through her neighborhood. However, this leads to odd viewings which make no sense in the eyes of Christiane who does not understand why these capitalist elements are present in East-Berlin. Such as the Coca-Cola poster on the building across her apartment or the colorful furniture outside that are from her Western neighbors. Alexander solves these confusions by news reports that his friend Denis and he broadcast for his mother to view. With this they create a whole new history with made-up events and suppress the truth.

     Furthermore, as Foucault states  ‘’knowledge is power’’ (52). Alexander has an information advantage as his mother has no clue about the events of the past eight months which gives him the autonomy to rule the world of his mother. ‘’Thus, where there are imbalances of power relations between groups of people [..] there will be a production of knowledge’’ (Mills 59). As is the case between Alexander and his mother. He is aware of the past and current events, however, Christiane is not. Hence Alexander reproduces information from where Christiane gains the ‘knowledge’. Which in fact is not knowledge based on fact but merely an imagined knowledge where Alexander gives access to.

     Additionally, one can make the assumption that Becker wants to make us aware that the deception of Christiane is not for Alexander’s own good but necessary for his mother’s well-being and is not compatible with governmental deception. Nevertheless this is possible to refute as in a sense Alexander does deceive his mother for his own gains. Alexander loves his mother to such a degree that he does not want to lose her and therefore chooses to keep her by preventing slightest shocks from occurring and thus preventing a heart attack that could lead to Christiane’s death. Hence it is comparable with GDR’s deception as they wanted their citizens to support the socialist ideologies because they, the GDR, did not wanted to lose socialism is East-Berlin which was their tool to rule. 

     Moreover, Becker tries not to choose sides by depicting socialism and democracy as equals by reflecting on both positive and negative effects of socialism and capitalism. When East-Berlin reunites with the rest of Germany many people lose their job and are left unemployed while during the rule of socialism unemployment rates were very low as ‘’employment was guaranteed by the state’’ (Leccardi 64). Furthermore, by this neutral stance, Becker himself practices self-censorship by leaving out certain expressions about the capitalist/socialist regime.

In addition, while Alexander is determined to withhold his mother from the truth, she finds it out anyhow. As is comparable with the socialist party. The GDR propagated its citizens in believing that East-Berlin and its social policies are the source of all good and the capitalist West all bad. Yet capitalism overcomes socialism as is proven by the fall of the Berlin wall and the socialist party and contributes positively to the socio-political flourishing of the country as it opens its borders and engages in international trade. (Gerritsen)

     In conclusion, the film displays a historical event reflecting it on a family wherein Alexander is portrayed as the government who, structures and regulates the reality of its citizens, in this case Christiane who is actively bombarded with propaganda and deception in the form of newscasts, refurbishment of the apartment etc. It also shows the contrasts of the effects of the fall of the Berlin wall and GDR as it impacted every citizen differently causing unemployment for some. And finally it depicts that censorship can be practiced by everyone from ordinary family members to political leaders, but cannot control and deceive reality forever. Thus no censorship is not an everlasting instrument.

Work Cited

     Booth, Wayne C, Gregory G Colomb, and Joseph M Williams. ‘’The Craft Of Research’’. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1995. Print.

     Gerritsen. ‘’International Politics’’. Leiden University. 2015. Lecture.

      ‘’Good-Bye, Lenin!’’. Germany: Wolfgang Becker, 2003. Film.
< https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZzQuRgaG24 >

     Leccardi, Carmen. ‘’1989’’. Strasbourg: Council of Europe, 2012. Print.

     Mills, Sara. ‘’Michel Foucault’’. London: Routledge, 2003. Print.

     *Discussions within the classes are also taken into account