Disgrace, Weakness, Rubbish? Material Culture of the GDR in Selected German Films After 1990

Abstract

The article focuses on the material culture of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) as portrayed in selected German films made after 1990 and set in the GDR. The objects that are used in the films serve as a special kind of artefacts, symbolizing the reality of the GDR and defining it as imperfect, below expectations, and inefficient in meeting consumer demand. An important point of reference in the article is the context of post-communist nostalgia, which is a source of interesting symbolic redefinitions.

Keywords

• GDR
• material culture
• film
• nostalgia
• everyday life