Postmodernism & Deutschland 83: blog tasks

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

claasic cold war media showed that the West as good and free and the East was bad and stric.The east was showen ans aas grey and ppor and cionrilled.The west nwas shown as rich frree and fulkl of culture

2) Why does Deutschland 83 provide a particularly good example for postmodern analysis?  Deutschland 83 is good for postmodern analysis because it mixes genres uses humour and plays with Cold War stereotypes. It also has an East German spy as the main character which is unusual.

3) Pick out some of the aspects of the opening of episode 1 and explain why they are significant.  The episode starts with text showing the time and place in 1983. Reagan’s speech about the “evil empire” is shown on TV. There is also an interrogation scene that becomes funny instead of serious. These moments show the Cold War setting but also parody the spy genre.

4) How does the party scene at Martin's mum's house subvert stereotypes of East Germany in the Cold War?
The party scene shows East German people having fun together. They drink beer dance and listen to music. This challenges the stereotype that life in East Germany was always dull and unhappy.
5) What aspects of the episode set in West Germany offer postmodern elements?
In West Germany there are scenes showing luxury and lots of products in shops. Pop music is used and there is humour during spy training. These mix popular culture with spy genre conventions which is postmodern.
6) Finally, how does the article apply postmodern theory to Deutschland 83 and link it to the potential target audience?
the article says the show reimagines the past rather than showing the exact truth. It mixes fact and fiction and challenges simple Cold War ideas of good and bad. This appeals to modern audiences who are interested in new and different views 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 postmodernity. What examples are provided of the breakdown of the distinction between culture and society (media-isation)? Examples include advertising making products successful even if the quality is poor. Another example is characters like Borat and Bruno feeling more real to audiences than the actor who created them.


2) What is Fredric Jameson's idea of 'historical deafness'? How can the idea of 'historical deafness' be applied to Deutschland 83? Historical deafness is when people lose a real understanding of history and only know it through media. In Deutschland 83 the Cold War is shown through a TV drama so audiences understand the past through the show rather than real experience.

3) What examples and theories are provided for the idea of 'style over substance'?  Examples include people caring more about brands than product quality and celebrities from reality TV who are famous for being famous. Theories mentioned include Baudrillard’s hyperreality and Jameson’s idea of cultural depthlessness.

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?  One example is pop music sampling classical music. This mixes high culture and popular culture. In Deutschland 83 pop music from the 1980s is used in scenes which mixes history with popular culture.

5) What is bricolage? What examples of bricolage can be found in Deutschland 83?  Bricolage means mixing different texts styles or ideas to create something new. In Deutschland 83 it mixes spy genre conventions pop music comedy and historical drama.

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.  Audiences enjoy the show because it challenges simple ideas of the Cold War and mixes fact and fiction. Postmodern texts make audiences think and interpret meaning themselves rather than giving simple answers.

7) Now look at page 4 of the factsheet. How does Deutschland 83 demonstrate aspects of the postmodern in its construction and ideological positioning?  Deutschland 83 shows postmodern ideas by mixing genres using humour and challenging simple good vs evil ideas. The East German spy is the main character which complicates the usual ideology of Cold War stories.

8) Which key scenes from Deutschland 83 best provide examples of postmodernism? Why? 
The interrogation scene because it turns serious spy conventions into comedy. The party scene because it shows a different view of East Germany. The supermarket scene in the West because it mixes pop music humour and culture.

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