The production work groups in the GDR : from mobilization to control
Abstract
According to S. Kott, there are two ways to understand working groups in Honecker’s GDR: as a way of regimenting the citizens, or as a way for them to access a protected space in order to assert their social demands. Both visions however are biased, in the sense that they presuppose the existence if an autonomous social body crushed by an independent political power. Thus, Kott asks the question of the means by which political power may take roots in the “social nexus” through the work groups. First of all, she brings out how the work group movement was built up gradually in response to political objectives, and then highlights the limits of their capacity to mobilize. She finally stresses the importance of their role in the control and discipline of citizens.
Origin : Files produced by the author(s)
Loading...