Final Blog

What have I learned from German Culture:

            I have learned many things this semester in the class. Things I had no idea about Germany before. To tell you the truth, I knew nothing about Germany. Only thing I knew about when people mention Germany was Beer, Hitler and Nazi. That is the first thing my mind went straight too. But now I have leaned many more things. Such as RAF, music, art, food, and wartime. I really enjoyed this class because it wasn’t my normal hard classes, it was a class that I enjoyed coming to and it didn’t stress me out. I really enjoyed the class discussion and debates we had and all the laughs and jokes the professor made. It kept things interesting.

What I enjoyed learning about the most:

            I think what I liked most about this class was the movie Berlin Calling. I thought it was a great movie and taught me a lot about the German Rave scene. I really enjoyed this movie because it was filled with parting, drugs, and just outrageous behavior. I think it is always fun to watch movies that are completely different than your own life. I also enjoyed the movie Baarder-Meinhof. I liked learning about the RAF and about the radicals and how things changed over the years with that group. This group of people believed in a lot and stood for nothing less than what they believed was right.

Overall:

            I think this class was one of my favorite classes this semester. It was easy going, less stress, and interesting topics. The topics we covered in class were great and I would tell anyone to take this class!!

German Food

Sauerbraten

                                                                                                         

Picture 1

Sauerbraten (meaning "sour roast") is a German pot roast. It can be prepared with a variety of meats. Most often it is made with beef. But also can be made out of venison, lamb, pork, mutton, or horse. Sauerbraten is considered as one the the national dishes of Germany. It is one of the best known meals in Germany.

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How to cook it

Before cooking it, the cut of meat is marinaded for several days in a mixture of vinegar or wine, water, herbs, spices, and seasonings. The longer you marinade the meat, the more tender and juicy it is at the end. Sauerbraten is traditionally served alongside with German side dishes. Side dishes such as Rotkohl (red cabbage), potato dumplings, egg noodles, or boiled potatoes. 

The meat is usually cut from the bottom round or the rump. And will be marinaded for 3 to 10 days. Red wine vinegar is usually used, and earthy aromatics spices which include peppercorns, juniper berries, cloves, nutmeg, and bay leaves. But some people use (although less common) coriander, mustard seed, cinnamon, ginger, and thyme. This acidic marinade helps tenderize the meat. 

After you marinade the meat, it is first browned in oil or lard and then braised with the strained marinate. You cover the meat in a pot and cover it with the marinade it on the stove top for four hours. The marinade continues to flavor the meat while it cooks. 

Varieties in Saurbraten

Regional varieties in western areas of Germany typically use red wine as the base for the marinade. Recipes from eastern Germany tend to use vinegar as the base. And in some places, wine and vinegar are used together. Rheinischer Sauerbraten is prepared in Germany's Rheineland region. It is noted for a gravy to which raisons and sometimes sugar beet syrup is added to provide sweetness to the marinade.

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Brief History

Sauerbraten was originally made with only horse meat. But today it is almost always made with beef. The town of Eschweiler, is where the long horse butcher tradition, and where the sauerbraten is one of its culinary specialities. Sauerbraten was invented in the ninth century as a means of using leftover roasted meat. 

Resources:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauerbraten, December 12, 2012

Pictures:
1. http://wearelandrich.blogspot.com/2011/01/sauerbraten.html
2. http://www.flickr.com/photos/conscious_dreaming/7677055140/
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauerbraten

Questions for Baader-Meinhof

1.    They all met as a group. As a group they started a resistance movement, at first it was nonviolent. But as time went on and generations after the first came about, it turned into violent movements. This happened because the nonviolence movements and protests were not working.

2.    At the beginning when they used nonviolence, I related. But as time went on and they started killing others, which is when I stopped relating. I am not a violent person and would never kill anyone.

3.     Yes, it made the group use larger and more severe acts of violence. 

Baader-Meinhof

I personally think that the RAF was a good thing to a certain point. I respect them tremendously for standing up for what they believe in and fighting for what they think is right. I do believe they went about it the wrong way. Violence doesn't solve anything. If you act violently towards government officials, that is not going to make them listen to them. That is just going to put you in prison and not get your voice heard in the future. I also do not like that during their acts of violence they harmed innocent people. They didn't seem to care that they were going to kill innocent people. They are too radical for me!

After researching the RAF, it started out as the Baader-Meinhof group and it was formed in 1970 in Germany. The RAF first started out as a student protest movement that was suppose to be nonviolent ways of protesting the German government and its policies. There was three generations of activist. The first, and the founders, which consisted of the founders. These people were Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin, Horst Mahler, and Ulrike Meinhof. These group members were thrown into prison. The second generation which was operated from the late (or mid) 1970's. The second generation was way more violent than the first generation. The third generation existed from 1980-1990s. Teh third generation was the most violent of the three generations of the RAF. As the newer generations operated the RAF became more violent and was responsible for more deaths. All in all the RAF was responsible for 34 deaths and several bombings and robberies. The RAF was known as the more violent group throughout Europe. They were recognized as a communist group and had anti-imperialism ideas. They engaged in violent resistance against the German government. The only way to violently protest the government is to use guerilla tactics and in an urban setting this is the beginning of a terrorist organization.

The Film: Berlin Calling:

Berlin Calling Questions to Answer:

1. What do drugs mean to Ickarus?

Ickarus is addicted to drugs. He is pressured by his "friends" to take them and the are promoted to take them. They represent a good time and a source of inspiration for him.

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

His fans would take drugs during the party and the raves that they would attend or host.  They would take these drugs to be able to feel the music and to live through the music and to obtain a high and get that good feeling. They drugs that they took I am not sure the names of, but I could see them being some forms of cocaine, meth, acid, Ecstasy, and pot. 

3. While we can see that his drug habits get him ill and into a psychosis, and while we witness his relapse and inability to work successfully, why does the subculture Ickarus is in focus on drugs?

The drugs help young people have fun, let loose, and have a good time.

4. Compare the standards you know from your home society with the people you see depicted in this movie. Which are the stark differences and contrasts?

I think the main difference is that we don't have such extreme raves and parties. I have never been to a party were drugs are being passed around like we saw in the movie and were people are doing lines of coke in the bathroom. 

5. Germany is considered a strong industrial nation the world over. Do you think that the youth culture as depicted here could change that? How about work ethics of Ickarus and of Alice, the label director who fires and then re-signs him?

Ickarus had an extremely strong work ethic. Even when he was hospitalized and struggling, he never wanted to stop working. He continued to work through his problems and worked while he tried to get better. He always had music and his album on his mind, even with being sick. 

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

I don't think I know of any cult movies that are similar to this movie of hand. 

Reaction to the movie

I really enjoyed this movie. I thought it was really interesting how Germany's youth is and what happens in Germany's party culture. It showed the rave scene which mostly comprises of sex, alcohol, and drugs. This move had a darker and more depressive feel to most movies and wasn't all happy the whole time. It showed the true struggles of drug addiction and the consequences of what can happen. It shows what you act like when you are not sober and when you are on drugs, how you can almost die, or have to enter rehab. 

This movie also shows a side of the music industry that isn't always visible to outsiders. Most people think music industry is all glamorous but fail to realize it's dark side. They think about how much money they can make and how popular they will be. But in reality artists are under extreme pressure to try drugs, to party, to do things that under normal circumstances they wouldn't do. This movie also shows how hard it is to be in the music industry. You are always having to write new music and create new albums. You are under pressure to finish it on time and make your manager and label money. This struggle, as seen in the movie pushed Ickarus over the edge. He always had it on his mind to make a new record and became obsessive over it. 

This movie also shows the devastation this industry and drugs has on your personal life. Ickarus was abusive to his girlfriend and she took it. He was emotionally and physically abusive to her. He also disrespected her several times, for example, cheating on her with the girl in the bathroom while being high on some kind of drugs. She eventually left him for a better life.

I would recommend this movie to anyone. I really enjoyed it and I thought it was really interesting!

Fine Arts (Dance) in Germany

Pina Bausch

            The last group that presented was about the fine arts. They talked a little about Pina, but I decided I want to further research her.

            Pina was born July of 1940 but passed away in June of 2009. She was a German performer of modern dance. She was also a choreographer, dance teacher, and a ballet director. She had a unique style about her, with her style, movements, sounds, and prominent stage sets, and her amazing cooperation with performers, she became the leader influence in the 1970’s in the modern dance scene.

            Her dance career began when she was very young. She started dancing at a young age. At the age of 14, she entered the Folkwangschule in Essen and then directed by Germany’s most influential choreographer, Kurt Joos. Who was one of the founders of German expressionist dance. After she graduated, Pina studied dance at Julliard in New York. After that she joined Jooss’ new Folkwang Ballet Company as a soloist and assisted Joos on many pieces. She choregraphed her first piece in 1968, Fragment, to the music by Bela Bartok.

            Some awards Pina received are UK’s Laurence Olivier Award, Japan’s Kyoto Prize, and the Goethe Prize. She was elected a foreign honorary member of the American Academy of Art and Sciences in 2009.

            Pina has done many works and many dances throughout her life.

Resources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pina_Bausch 

Music in Germany

Music in Gemrany:

            Music is universal. Music can be read from anyone in any language. I guess you could say music could be perhaps a universal language. Each note can be read and played no matter where you are from or what language you speak. It is the same throughout!

            Music in Germany include Neue Deutsche Welle (NDW), Krautrock, Hamburger Schule, Volksmusik, Classical, German hip hop, trance, Schlager, Neue Deutsche Härte (NDH) and diverse varieties of folk music, such as Waltz and Medieval metal. Although there are several types of music, the most popular by far is classical. German Classical is among the most performed in the world. Some of Germany’s famous composers would include Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Schubert, Johannes Brahms, and Richard Wagner. Also Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart who was born in Austria, but was among many opera composers who created the German Opera.

            In the 19^th century, two figures were paramount in German opera, Carl Maria von Weber and Richard Wagner. Wagner introduced devices such as leitmotiv, a musical theme that recurs for important chararters or ideas. Wagner based his operas on German history and folklore. His most important was Ring f the Nibelung in 1874.

            When the Nazis came to power in Germany during the 1930s, many composers fled Germany. But following the war, German composers began to experiment with electronic sounds in classical music.

            Germany has many unique regions with their own folk traditions of music and dance. Much of the 20th century saw German culture appropriated for the ruling powers (who fought "foreign" music at the same time). Most recently, the East German regime promoted folk music as long as it was what they saw as an expression of pure German tradition, and a tool for spreading party propaganda. Folk songs were taught to children because they were seen as sunny and optimistic. They had little to due with German tradition. Germany underwent changes in their music, songs started to become more about political activism and realistic joy, sad, and passion.

            There are many more kinds of music Germany has, but if I were to talk about them all, I would be talking all day.

Resources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_Germany

http://www.germany.co.za/german_music.html

http://www.naxos.com/education/brief_history.asp