Berlin calling questions and reaction

Berlin Calling

1.      Why is Ickarus taking drugs?

I believe Ickarus is using drugs because he needs to. He is addicted. Although it probably did not start as an addiction, just a recreational past time, it slowly developed into an addiction as his body built up tolerance and he needed to use them more and more to get the same high.

2.      Why are his fans taking drugs, and which drugs do they take?

His fans are probably taking drugs for many reasons. Reasons could range from recreational use, just for fun. Or because they are addicted. Or some may take drugs because Ickarus takes drugs, many people look up to famous people and do things just to be like them. The main drug of choice seemed to be cocaine.

3.      Why does the sub-culture Ickarus is in focus on drugs?

I think the sub culture focuses on drugs because it is a part of the life they live. They do not know the repercussions of using the drugs as much as they do. Also, some people may feel pressured to do it just to fit into the club scene that seems to be the sub culture he is in.

4.      Which are the stark differences and contrasts?

There are mainly differences between my home society and this culture. Cocaine is not a big drug in my life or sub-culture at all. Whereas it seems to be prevalent in the sub-culture in the movie. Alcohol is more the drug of choice in my home society. At parties, people get drunk, they don’t do cocaine. Also the other thing that I have never seen at a party and hope to never see, is people engaging in gay sex. That would be considered extremely inappropriate.

5.      I think the generation depicted in this movie could definitely change Germany’s status in the world. If this movie accurately depicted this generation. AND if this is a depiction of the entire generation or just a small portion of it. I think the people depicted in this movie have a lot of growing up to do if they are going to be successful in life.

If everyone has the work ethic of Ickarus and his manager, Germany should be just fine. They had good work ethic and showed lots of dedication.

6.      Which similar “cult movies” of US origin have you seen, if any?

I have not seen any cult movies that I know of.

7.      My answer to question number 4 and 5 is a pretty good explanation of my reactions to this movie.

Gender Roles in the 20th Century

Roles of Women and Men in German 20^th Century Society

            I found the role of German men and women in the 20^th century are basically the same as that of men and women in the United States. Women are expected to be homemakers, and men are expected to work, provide for the family, and go to war when needed. Like the United States, women made significant gains (right to vote, etc… ) throughout the 20^th century, and continue to make gains today, but are yet to have same and equal roles.

For centuries, a woman's role in German society was summed up by the three words: Kinder, Küche, Kirche (children, kitchen, church). Throughout the twentieth century, however, women have gradually won victories in their quest for equal rights. For instance, in 1919 women gained the right to vote. Changes also came about during WWII. During the war, women stepped up and took over jobs of men when they went to war and fought. In West Germany, the Basic Law of 1949 declared that men and women were equal, but it was not until 1957 that the civil code was amended to conform to this statement. In the east, however, women remained in the workforce. The Soviet-style system mandated women's participation in the economy, and the government implemented this key objective by opening up educational and vocational opportunities to women. As early as 1950, marriage and family laws also had been rewritten to accommodate working mothers. Abortion was legalized and funded by the state in the first trimester of pregnancy.

After several decades of conforming to traditional social patterns, West German women began to demand changes. Following patterns in Europe and the United States, emancipation in the Federal Republic originated "from below," with women themselves. In the 1970s, the women's movement gathered momentum, having emerged as an outgrowth of student protests in the late 1960s rallying around the causes of equal rights (including the right to abortion, which was somewhat restricted in West Germany), the movement succeeded in having legislation passed in 1977 that granted a woman equal rights in marriage. A woman could work outside the home and file for divorce without her husband's permission. Divorce was permitted when the marriage partners could no longer be reconciled.Women also made gains in education in both East and West Germany. By the mid-1960s, East German women accounted for about half of all secondary school graduates who had prepared to study at institutes of higher learning in the GDR; by the 1975-76 academic year, they were in the majority (53 percent). To assist women in completing their studies, an extensive support system, including supplementary payments and child care, was provided. Despite these gains, gender discrimination is still evident in Germany. Women are rarely awarded top tier jobs, and hold only 9.2% of jobs in Germany's upper and middle management positions. There have been more improvements in the 21^st century, but the gender inequality is still basically the same.

All quiet film and book review/research

All Quiet on the Western Front

In researching and reviews on “All Quiet on the Western Front” I learned that this movie had a huge impact on audiences around the world when it came out. It won Oscars for Best Picture, and Milestone’s directing in the movie. I found many critics that credit the movie with being a major contributor the shaping the film industry today. It is called “timeless,” “harrowing,” and “classic” by many.

            The film and book were warmly received in America, however that was not the case in Germany. It was criticized by the right for talking badly about the military, and by the left, for the Author, Erich Remarque, participating in the war rather than just denouncing it. When it was time for the film to come out the Nazi’s were in power. The Nazis disrupted the premiere, Joseph Goebbels made a speech denouncing it, mice, stink bombs and sneezing powder were released in the theater and outside, the SS instigated a riot. The Nazi paper called it "A Jewish lie" and "a hate film slandering the German soldier." The film was banned inside Germany, but the German language version played to full houses just over the border, and special trains and buses transported the audience to theaters in Switzerland, France and the Netherlands. (http://www.moviediva.com/MD_root/reviewpages/MDAllQuietWesternFront.htm) It was banned in Austria, Hungary, Italy, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, and New Zealand. It was finally shown in Germany in 1952 and Italy in 1956.

            All Quiet… was careful to bring no glory to war, like other films had done. It was heralded for its realistic view of war, violent, gory, and tragic. A London Times critic wrote, “Realism reaches its zenith in this picture. I hate it. It brought back the war to me as nothing has ever done before or since.” This was one of many quotes I read about the film, however this one stuck out to me. I think it is a very strong statement about the film and speaks to the way many people may have felt about the film.

Chapter 12 All quiet

Chapter 12

In this chapter Paul is off the front lines recovering from inhaling some gas. He is in the garden thinking how life will be after the war. He talks about how the generations before and after his will be just fine. The generation before will go back to their occupations they had before the war. The generation after will “be strange to us and push us aside.” But his generation will not know how to adapt. The war is all they know. “The years will pass by and in the end we shall fall into ruin,” he says. As much as Paul wants the armistice and the war to end, he is nervous for what is to come of his future.

In the end, Paul never has to face his fear of post-war life. Paul is killed in October 1918. “On a day that was so quiet and still on the whole front, that the army report confined itself to the single sentence: All quiet on the Western Front.”