Granì (Jan 2017)
Everyday life of the displaced persons’ camps in occupied Germany (The magazine «DiPiniada», 1946-1947)
Abstract
The article deals with the important scientific problem of everyday life stories of displaced persons (DPs) in camps in occupied Germany (US zone of occupation, Bavaria). The peculiarities of life and living conditions of displaced persons, their communication practices with the camp administration, the local German population, UNRRA officials and representatives of the Soviet occupation authorities have been analyzed. Main everyday life priorities of DPs have been outlined, character and methods of their employment has been shown. Basic everyday life tactics of DPs in camps has been set using historical sources 1945-1947 (press materials, reports UNRRA officials, reports of non-governmental organizations professionals).It has been proved that life of DPs was based on a few key priorities, among which were the main problems of housing quality, food, clothing, nature of activities and employment. The dynamics of change in the daily life of displaced persons from the primitive forms of survival in 1945-1946, to the «well-fed apathy» 1947-1948 has been described. The difference in politics UNRRA in relation to the two main groups of displaced people: immigrants, who wanted to return to their homeland and potential emigrants who wanted to find a new life outside the sphere of influence of the USSR has been considered and illustrated. Special attention was devoted to gender communication. It has been shown that DPs contacts with the local German population had been an important communication component, which played a key role in the consolidation of the post-war society. The effect of domestic economic cooperation of DPs on the development of «black markets» systems the most popular products: cigarettes, coffee, food delicacies has been elicited. The research is based on the materials of the archive of Kharkov engineer and poet V. Ellis. The main point of which was the magazine «DiPiniada». The magazine was published during the years 1946-1947 in the camp Munich-Pasing (US zone of occupation in Germany). The schedule log (artist V. Odinokov) has been analyzed being a set of historical visual sources, as well as the poetry of W. Ellis 1944-1947 being a literary source. The most common situations in everyday life DPs that had appeared due the difficult circumstances of post-war world order had been described. The complex world of DPs relationship has been shown in the context of the overall historical situation on the territory of occupied Germany and in the whole post-war Europe. It has been proved that the investigation has prospects both in methodological and objective aspects. Particular interesting are the artistic solutions of the magazine, which are interesting not only for historians but also for art critics.
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