Several issues influencing the course of German history

The course of German history is very sinuous. German nationalism, the imbalance of the political and economic development generated by the influence of the historical and cultural traditions, the might of the Junker feudal aristocracy, the weakness of the bourgeoisie, the postwar reeducation of democratization imposed by the western allied powers on Germany, the developed education and technology, etc. are all important factors that influenced Germany’s history. __________ Translated from: Wuhan Daxue Xuebao, Renwen Kexue Ban 武汉大学学报: 人文科学版 (Wuhan University Journal, Humanity Science), No. 3, 2004     

The Cold War Politics of Cultural Minorities: Jews and Sorbs in the German Democratic Republic, 1976-1989

This article compares cultural identity politics relating toJews and Sorbs in the German Democratic Republic (GDR) from1976 to the collapse of communism in 1989. Drawing on stateand party sources, oral histories, literature and documentsfrom the Ministry for State Security (Stasi), it juxtaposesstate constructions of minority identities with the views andactions of Jewish and Sorbian students, writers and intellectuals.In its first three decades, the East German Communist party(SED) generally treated Jewish culture with suspicion or indifferenceand often conflated Jewishness with the capitalist West. Incontrast, the party celebrated a folkloric vision of Sorbianculture that linked Germany with the Slavic East. By the mid-1980s,the SED altered its posture towards Jews and Sorbs. In the GDR'sfinal decade, SED officials attempted to cultivate Jewish culturewhile viewing Sorbs with increased suspicion. The main reasonfor this shift was that SED officials placed Cold War foreignpolicy concerns over Marxist–Leninist ideological consistency.Treatment of Sorbs worsened as Sorbs forged ties with dissidentsin other Eastern Bloc nations. Meanwhile, celebrations of Jewishculture aimed to improve the GDR's ties with Western Europeby embracing Western Holocaust memory. The article also showsthat SED efforts to cultivate minority cultural identities oftenbackfired at the grassroots level. The minority cultural imagespromoted by the state often had little resonance outside leadershipcircles. Average GDR citizens frequently grew disenchanted withSED cultural minority policies, ultimately helping by the 1980sto destabilize the regime.     

Best Practice und Worst Case? Der Umgang mit der Hochschulzeitgeschichte an der Universität Jena und der Humboldt‐Universität: ein exemplarischer Vergleich

Best Practice vs. Worst Case? How East German Universities Deal with their Contemporary History: the Humboldt University of Berlin and the University of Jena. East German universities are often criticized for a lack of efforts to come to terms with their own history in the GDR. Two universities are regularly compared to illustrate the chances and shortcomings in this field: while the University of Jena is considered as very active in dealing with their own contemporary history the Humboldt University of Berlin is claimed to have substantial deficits. As a part of a general survey of the efforts of East German universities concerning their own contemporary history this contrastive picture is examined. It can be shown that the main differences between the two universities are less the intensity of historical self‐reflection but rather the thematic focus and the forms of presentation.     

民国时期江汉平原的粮食市场

粮食贸易在民国时期江汉平原的农村经济中占有重要地位,粮商及粮商组织、粮食加工和运输、粮食价格、粮食集散和粮食存储等几个方面反映了民国时期江汉平原的粮食市场的基本情况。粮食贸易将大量的基层市场、少量中间市场和几个中心市场联系在一起,粮食价格的趋同性表明这个地区当时存在着完整的粮食贸易体系,但相关市场特征又表明这个市场是不完善的。     

民初北洋政府德育教育失败的反思——以尊孔运动为考察中心

以尊孔运动为主要内容的民初北洋政府德育教育,其结果以失败而告终,究其原因集中体现在政策缺乏连续性、理论宣传的内在矛盾、民间资源借助不力、舆论氛围恶化四个方面。探究其败因得到以下启示:1.政策的连续性是德育教育成功的前提;2.内在机理完善的理论宣传是德育教育成功的基础;3.有效借助非政府资源是德育教育成功的保障;4.营造良好的舆论氛围是德育教育成功的关键。     

仪式政治:国民党与南京国民政府对孙中山的祭祀典礼

国民党与南京国民政府为标榜是孙中山民主革命思想与事业的合法继承者,把孙中山从“总理”推尊演绎成了“国父”圣符,并为之举行了逝世纪念、奉安纪念与诞辰纪念三种典礼仪式。从仪式政治与国家祭祀的角度对前两种典礼仪式进行系统的史学考察,并挖掘和诠释其表象背后的政治思想与社会文化内蕴,不仅有利于把握“后孙中山时代”民国官方对孙中山政治遗产的利用与运作体系,而且有利于继承和弘扬孙中山的民主革命精神与思想。     

试论民国时期英国对中国西藏的武器供应

民国时期,英国以赠送、出售方式向中国西藏提供了大批武器,对于英国控制西藏,攫取更多权益,将西藏纳入其缓冲地带战略轨道发挥了重要作用。英国对藏武器供应成为撬动英国与中国西藏之间关系的重要杠杆。本文利用英国印度事务部档案及其他史料,对这一时期英国向中国西藏武器供应的时间、种类和数量做了澄清,并论述了其性质。     

Southern Irish Protestants: an example of de‐ethnicisation?

ABSTRACT. The study of minorities is central to research in ethnicity and nationalism. But there are cases where the precise nature of the minority is not easy to determine. One view of Southern Irish Protestants is that in the decades after independence they transformed themselves (or were transformed) from British nationals to Irish nationals or, alternatively, from a British ethnic to an Irish religious minority. This paper argues that treating the (past) British dimension of Irish Protestant identity as ethnic or national misconceives it and overlooks the historically deep Irish context of Protestant identity. One consequence of this is the neglect of the specifically Irish roots of residual tensions in Catholic–Protestant relationships. The themes of the paper are exemplified with case material drawn from research on Protestants and Catholics in rural West Cork.     

Love your neighbor: Nazi soldiers and Femmes Fatales in Czech cinema

Analysis of popular culture can offer a better understanding of spatial representations prevailing in the everyday discourse than the insights inferred from official statements or mainstream scientific textbooks. Our everyday thinking about Central European space might be significantly different from representations outlined in texts written by intellectuals and politicians. In fact, there is a telling absence of common features among representations of different Central European countries in Czech films. These representations shape the process of meaning-making and they can help us better grasp the position of a country in relation to its neighbors too. Except for Germany and Slovakia, other actors from the immediate vicinity are virtually non-existent in Czech visual popular culture. While Germans are mostly male Nazi soldiers, Slovakia is described as an underdeveloped, mountainous territory with oversupply of beautiful, vivacious women. Data from 50 box-office hits and critically acclaimed movies produced during the last 20 years illustrate this argument. Such a systematic study of popular culture is not only more revealing than a simple focus on a few illustrative artworks, but it also increases the added value of discourse analysis that pays attention to predication and membership categories.     

The Curious History of the Minerva Reefs: Tracing the Origin of Tongan and Fijian Claims Over the Minerva Reefs

ABSTRACT

This article explores the historical events relating to the competing claims over the Minerva Reefs by Tonga and Fiji. Tonga’s sovereign claim over the Minerva Reefs was prompted by a private group’s laying claim to a 'Republic of Minerva' in 1972. At that time, Fiji, as well as the South Pacific Forum, recognized Tonga as the only possible owner of the Minerva Reefs, but did not explicitly recognize Tonga's claimed sovereign title. Such a position reflected the legal uncertainty in relation to Tonga's claim in 1972. The establishment of the 200?nm Exclusive Economic Zone legal regime in the late 1970s gave rise to Fiji's claim to the Minerva Reefs, whereas subsequent developments in international law have significantly reduced the legal uncertainty in relation to Tonga's claim.