Geschichte als Politikum

There is no controversy that history is a matter of political interest. Nevertheless, the political function of historical interpretations has not played a prominent role in political science so far. There are few studies dealing with this topic. This book attempts to fill the existing gap in political science.
Using the example of the GDR, the study investigates public and private memories by comparison. An innovative approach of mixed qualitative-quantitative methods reveals a rarely shared comprehension of how to remember the GDR past. But the results show as well that the Wendekinder tend to believe in the public memories regarding the GDR past, whereas the parents insist on their personal experiences. With regard to political interests, the generational turnover seems to encourage the legitimacy function and the stability function of history.