Beschrijving
Mistrust in persons, institutions, and systems thrive in times of uncertainty. This holds particularly true for periods in which societies deal with uncertainty regarding food sufficiency, when food shortages can lead to loss of political legitimacy. Germany between 1914-89 knew at least two periods of severe hunger, linked to the World Wars: 1914-24 and 1945-49. Both periods are characterized by simmering resentment against ruling political authorities regarding access to food, rumour culture and the rise of alternative consumption practices, such as black markets. Political authorities, in their turn, aimed to regain trust and commitment of societies.This paper investigates the interaction between German hunger periods and claims for (il)legitimate rule - from 1914 until 1989. In doing so it not only focusses on the dynamics between rulers and ruled in both hunger periods, but also on the ways narratives on the hunger periods functioned in processes of generating (dis)trust of authorities afterwards. As education is key in these processes of legitimacy, I analyse over 150 textbooks as well as educational state propaganda on German hunger, published in this 75-year period. Through exploring these educational materials, I focus on how hunger narratives were politically used under six variations of the state: Empire-, Weimar-, Nazi-, Allied occupied-, East and West Germany. I demonstrate that that political authorities from all these states used education on both German hunger periods to seek trust in their rule or to delegitimise political systems, -parties and collective worldviews. As such, I argue that although mistrust indeed thrives in times of crisis, mistrust structurally functions as an important tool for political self-preservation.
| Periode | 12 jan. 2024 |
|---|---|
| Evenementstitel | Contested Institutions in Modern German History |
| Evenementstype | Conferentie |
| Locatie | Utrecht, NederlandToon op kaart |
| Mate van erkenning | Internationaal |