The Wall You Will Never Know

14 Pages·2.666 MB·English

by  Preuss E.

Yale University, School of Architecture
The Wall You Will Never Know
Author(s): Evelyn Preuss
Source: Perspecta, Vol. 36, Juxtapositions (2005), pp. 19-31
Published by: The MIT Press on behalf of Perspecta.
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1567361 .
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PERSPECTA36 THE WALLY OU WILL NEVERK NOW
EVELYN PREUSS The arresting move, or the modernity of the wall
The frontso ft he Second WorldW ar had collapsed less than a year before,
whenW instonC hurchillp roclaimed,i n March 1946,t hata n "lronC urtain"
had descended upon Eastern Europe," [f]romS tettini n the Baltic to Trieste in
the Adriatic."H is metaphorl ikenedt he Eastern parto ft he continenta, nd
especially its thresholdt, he German-Germanb ordert, o a window,a stage or, TheB erliWn all
givent he design of movieh alls in those days, a movies creen. All oft hese
devices rendera n object or scene visuallya ccessible but,a t the same time,
also keep the spectator at bay.T he access theys eem to granti s a virtualo ne, .
since the distance, or screen, that separates the viewerf romt he viewed .3 .
.
impedes hera bilityt o verifyw hat she sees and to become a parto f it herself. .--"
By casting his metaphoricalc urtaini ntoi ron,C hurchillu nderscoredt he
inaccessibilitoyf t hev ieweda, s his imagea ssociates cages, shacklesa nd
gridst hat keep people or animals in place and arrestf ree movementT. his TheI srael-PalestinSiaenp aratiWona ll
imaginaryo ft he "IronC urtain"e ventuallym aterializedi n concrete:t he Berlin
Wall.
Along the lines of Churchill'sr hetoricw, hichc onceived oft he spread of
communisma s the dawningo f a new "darka ge," the BerlinW all came to be
characterizeda s anti-modernS. till in 1987,U .S. presidentR onald Reagan's
speech in fronto ft he Wall portrayst he Eastern bloc as regressive,a s a slave-
drivings ocietyt hat is technologicallys o backwardsi t is even unable to feed
its people (let alone tend to morec onsumeristd esires), and as a regimet hat
seeks to arresti nnate humand rivesf ors ocial and economic advancement.
Turnings uch politicalc atchwordsi ntos cholarship,t he culturalh istorian
Brian Ladd almost literallyq uotes the speech anotherU .S. president,J ohnF .
Kennedyg, ave in fronto ft heW all 24 years earlier,t heorizingt hatt he German-
German borderf ortificatio"nc onnoted an attempt,b y politicalf iat,t o reverse
the growinge conomic and social mobilityo ft he modernw orld.T he name
"Wall,"s hunned byi ts builders,c alled attentiont o its anachronisma nd came
to signifya crimea gainst historya s well as humanity"(1 9).1 To curtailm ove-
Wi1tihtohutoe euxxtp l icitlyr eferencing
ment,t o arresta subject, certainlyr epresentso ne oft he basic functionso f hiss ourceL, addq uotetsh e
walls, butt he historicale ras and models to whichW estern politiciansa nd ispfneecrohU .tS.ofp 1ren siedeeJtWnotlh Fnn st w
scholars allude do notc orroboratet heirc harge thatt he BerlinW all Kennedgy
taee sJ uner to
constituteda n anachronism. hallo fS chineberg":t hwe alils
On the contraryI, w ould liket o argue thatt he Wall emerged as a monu- [...]a s youMr ayo[Wr illByr andt]
has said, an offense not only
mentt o modernityas mucha s to the politicala nd culturali maginaryt hat againshti storbyu,at l soa gainst
shaped the second halfo ft he twentiethc enturya nd continuest o forget he humani(tKye"n nedy).
twenty-firsWt.h ile the BerlinW all mayh ave resembleda ncient or medieval
fortificationsit, s erved an entirelyd ifferenpt urpose.W hereas the historic
structuresw ithw hichi t has been compared- the GreatW all of China,
Hadrian's Wall and the Limes - as well as the walls enclosing medievalc ities
and estates, were primarilyb uiltt o keep people out,t he BerlinW all was
constructedp rimarilyto keep people in. Contraryt o the rhetorico ft he East
German regimet hat it builta n "antifascistp rotectionr ampart"a gainst
Western imperialismt,h e troopst hat guardedt he buildingo ft he Wall in
August 1961 were specificallyi nstructedt o prevente scapes fromt he East. In
fact,t heyw ere strictlyf orbiddent o firea shot intot he Western direction
(Beyer 107). This directionalityis also inscribedi ntot he Wall's architecture.
Hagen Koch,f ormerlya cartographera nd officeri n the East German secret
19 service, pointso ut thatt he traps along the Wall were notd esigned to stop
bothb leedintgh ea utomotdivive isioIn t.h innko ww ea rea ta Int haste nsei ti s realleya syt os eet hatth eries so much aren ote asilyr elocated.Yhoauv et ob ei no nel ocatiobnu, t
similapro intto w henC TEKst arted,trytoinc ogm eu pw itah strengitnht hed evelopmoenft th ea rchitectudriavli sion.Waree researcihs beingd oneb ys omeoneel sei na nothelorc ation.
businesms odetlh adt oesn'rte alleyx istIn. itialwlyh,e nE ricw as ablet oc apturseo methitnhga its so neededin t hea rchitecturalI nformatgiooenst oa thousanddif ferepnlatc es.Anrdea llayn a-
approachbedyF ranGke hrtyof abricatthe isn ewt hingth, e industarnyd,t haits w htyh ep rojecttsh awt ew orokn a res uch lyzinignd etaiwl hawt ed oi na erospacaen da utomotiIv teh,i nk
beautwya st haht eh adn oi deaw haht ew asg ettinign toIt.w as achievementsw.Ahnwyd e g etc ompetitolarrsg, ec ompaniejuss, t weh aveg ottetnot hep oinwt herteh eyar en otin trinsfiocrt he
becauseo ft haitg noranacne db lissb, ecauseh ed idn'rte ally runninbgeh inuds ,t ryintgoc atchu pW. ed on'ht avet haitn developmoenft th ea rchitectutreaclh nologiIetms . ighatc tually
havea nu nderstandoifnt gh ew hol-e likew heny oua rea child thea utomotiinved ustWryed. on'ht avet haitn t hea erospace bet heo pposite.tAhteb eginninCgT,E Kw asa boupt uttinalgl
andy ous ee thits reet haits so awesomteh ayt ouju sth avec limb industIrty'sv. erdyi fficufoltra nyc ompantoyn ota ddresssu stain- thesep eoplteo gethYero.u s haket hemal l upa ndo utc omes
allt hew ayu pn, ote vent hinkianbgo uwt hethietr's d angerouIns. ablet echnologiWesh. atth eydo g oodt heyar eg oingto t ryan d crazybr illiance.
manwy ayys ouh avet hasti milaorp portuntiotdya yw,h erteh eries makbe etteWr.h etnh eyn eedt oa ddressso methian lgi ttle RubenIt h asv eryli ttlteo d ow itahn yb usinesms odel.Aintd'ss o
notn ecessarial yp athla ido uti nf ronotfy ou.Yohua vet og o differesnotm, ethitnhga tta kets estinigt,i s hardto e veng et muchro manticizedh.Yavoueg ott ob ea na lcoholiacn dw alk
downth ep athb yi nstinct. involved. upsidde own.
RubenIt 'si nterestitnhgew ayy oulo oka ti tW. hawt ed oi nt he JennifTehr at'ps arto ft hea ppeaol fe xperimenctoaml panies. JennifEerx tractiiso cnr iticable causet hapt arto fC TEKth, e
automotiinved ustirsy co mpetitiIotn'sr. eallbya sicI.t 'sn ota bout Theries a romantaipcp eal.Thceh allengies business. respecatn dr omanticiissm no, ww haatl lowCs TEKto c ontinue
researcohr f indinnge ww ayosf d oingth ings.Whitec no mets o Ruben.. . andt hawt aso neo ft hef ailureosf C TEKor iginalWlye. pasta poinotf c risis.
architectuwrhea,w t eh aveb eena blet oa chievhe asp utu si na didn otu nderstawnhda wt ed idb esta ndj ustf ocuos nt hatW. e TammIyti s importatnor te cognitzhe atO. urf abricatowresr eso
positiownh erteh eo thecro mpaniaers es trugglitnogc atchu p. dids o mantyh ings. entrenchiendt h ea utomotWiveew. erenv'te rygo oda s a
Timaen dt imaeg aint heyca n'td ow hawt eh aved ones o far. TammTyh er esearctha kesp lacei nm ancya sesi ns ettingths at managemegnrto uipn m akintgh emun derstatnhda atr chitecture
PERSPECTA 36 EVELYN PREUSS THE WALL YOU WILL NEVER KNOW
trafficf romt heW est, butt o prohibift lightf romt he East (Intervieww ithH agen
Koch in FraukeS andig and Eric Black's Aftert heF all).2 S2
See also Flemming.
The directionf romw hicht he Berlinr ampartw as supposed to contain
movementm akes it morea kint o a prisonw all thant o the ancienta nd medieval
fortificationtsh atw ere builtt o protects edentarym odes of productionf rom
morem obilew ays of stakingo ut a living.I nstead of providingp rotection
against the outside,t he BerlinW all primarilyse rved as a carceral enclosure.
Itw as, to use Michel Foucault's characterizationo ft he prisonw all, "no longer
the wall thats urroundsa nd protects,n o longert he wall thats tands forp ower
and wealth,b utt he meticulouslys ealed wall [...] at the veryc entero ft he
cities" (116). Moreovert, he degree of surveillance,r egimentationan d control
thatt he BerlinW all enabled byc onfiningE ast Germans and Eastern Euro-
peans markedlyc orrespondst o the modernp rison,w hich,a ccordingt o
Foucault,e pitomizes- rathert han negates - moderns ociety (231, 233). As
such, the BerlinW all mayh ave offeredm orea foretasteo fc ontrolm echanisms
to come than a glimpse intot he past.
The factt hat mobilityis about as old as civilizationa lso pointst o flaws in
Ladd's historiographicaml odelt hate quates modernityw ithm ovementW. hile
he suggests that" in an earliera ge, withm uch less humanm obilityr,u lers
would not have needed and subjects would not have noticedt his barriert o
mobility"(1 9), the abilityt o move about has indeed been essential in previous
eras - despite a multitudeo f walls. Fromt he MiddleA ges rightt o the
beginningo ft he twentiethc enturyc,r aftsmenl earnedt heirt rade byt raveling.
Fort he aristocracya nd the uppert iero ft he bourgeoisie,a grandt ourm ade
the man complete. Likewise,s tudentsa nd scholars travelede xtensivelyt o
study,t each or dispute at various places of learningA. nd rulerst raveledf ar
and wide to stake theirc laims. Colonial enterprises- froma ncientt imes to
the last century- requireda n immensed egree of mobilitym, ovinge ntire
armies and workforcesa cross the globe. Even the AmericanW est was still
conquered withd istinctlyp re-modernm eans oft ransportt,h e horse and the
buggy( and guns,o f course). Formso f governmentd epended on travel,
cultures made theirl ivingb yt ravelinga, nd entirep eoples' migrationst ook
place withoutr ailroadsa nd airplanes. Modernitym ayh ave broughtw ithi tt he
inventiono f moree fficientm eans of mass transportationb, utt heira bsence
did not preventp eople fromm ovinga bout in previouse ras. Certainlyt, he
affordabilitayn d types oft raveld epended on social standinga nd profession;
howevert, hata lso has notc hanged to this day,a s ZygmuntB auman's model
oft wo-tieredg lobalizations uggests: at anyt ime in accounted humanh istory,
there have been elites who distinguishedt hemselves fromt he "lower" ranks
of society byt heira bilityt o travel.I fa nythingm, odernc ommunicationa nd
informatiotne chnologyh ave renderedt ravell ess relevantt o governmental
tasks and mercantilea nd scholarlye xchange,a nd, throught echnological
advance, the relativem anpowern ecessary to occupy,s ubjugate and exploit
foreignl ands has decreased. In sum,t he mobilityo f previousc ivilizationsm ay
be all the morer emarkableg ivent heirl ack of modernt echnologya, nd while
technical innovationm ayh ave facilitatedm obilityi,t a lso reduced the need
and the incentivef orp eople to get on the move.
Consideringt he major purpose of walls in previouse ras, the correlation
between mobilityan d fortificatioanc tuallyt urnso ut to be the reverseo f what
Ladd's model posits. It is not because the citizenryg rewm orei tinerantin the
20 moderna ge thatc itya nd estate walls have disappeared, but because
wasn ota carw ew erwe orkinong ,b utt hayt ouc ana pplyth e
samet echniques.Trtyoih nagv et haft ocutsr ickdleo wnfr omth e
Fe. ,- I< pxe 7cm -tke~ e3~I designto t hea ssembllyin e,transferfrrionmagr chitecttuor e
automotive...
to
ppsiiZ5 e & r RubenT herwe asv eryli ttlceo mmunicabtieotnw eedniv isions.
~rD 4I AAIV~~? " Itw ass hocking.Thiesr ane o peratioonfsf iceinrt hea erospace
rA?~wvatnsc e;n ch1 af\rt~Q lneew
divisiown,h icihs isolateadn dw orkws elol ni tso wn.Thaeu to-
motivdeiv isiowna sl inketdo t heo peratioonfsf icerans,d a n
architectudriavli siotnh awt asc reateidn r esponsteot heG ehry
project.Tahrec hitectudriavli siocno mmunicattoet sh e
-~ra eti operatioonfsf icewrh ant eedts ob ed one- wes peakt oh imin
Englisahn dh eu nderstanhdaslf o fi ti nC hinesaen dt heo ther
halfin J apanesWe. hawt eg otb ackh adn othintogd ow itahn y-
thinwg es pokoe f.Thaer chitectuprraol jectwse ren ote ven
addresseWd. ed idnt'ta lka boutth embe causet herwe asv ery
littluen derstandoifnw gh awt ew ered oing.
TammIyti s veryh ardf ora utomotfivabe ricatotrot sr ansititoon
TammEdym onsdkse'st cohfc orien dustries architecture.aTrheeu yse dt oh avinagn a ggressivsceh edule.
PERSPECTA 36 EVELYN PREUSS THE WALL YOU WILL NEVER KNOW
moveable assets, by becomingl ess "real" and tangible,h ave become less
mobile.W hen exchange value was denoted in precious metals, itc ould be
easily removedf romi ts owners.S ince the coins, necklaces and household
itemst hats erved as currencya nd as "savings accounts" oftenw ere ofa
generic nature,t heyc ould switchh ands easily and unaccountedlyT. hey also
could be remoldeda nd, thus,r etaint heirv alue withoutl eavinga trace as to
theiro riginalo wners.A s insurancew as notc ommonlya vailable to covert he
loss, externalf ortificationws ere needed to protectm ovablea ssets from
unwelcomet ransfer.Thisc hanged witht he developmento ff inanciali nstru-
mentst o the extentt hatt heyr eplaced movablea ssets. Since promissory
notes, stocks and bills of exchange were of limitedt ransferabilityth, eyc ould
no longerb e lost in the same way as gold and silver.3I n addition,d erivatives,
E3
such as insurance,f urtheras suaged the gravityo ff inancialm ishap or risk. validitiyfp rocralnoy i the
Witht he onset of modernc ommercea nd finance,m edievalw alls gradually aret ransferabolnel wy itthh e
lost theirf unctionW. hile manys urvivedi n economicallyl ess developed areas, consenotf t heo wner)tohre ayr e
registeredan d thust raceablet o
theyw ere frequentlyd emolished in commercialc enters,n ot because they theiorr iginoawl neBry.t hem-
obstructedt he mobilityo f citizens,b utm ainlyf ort he reason thatt heirs ites selvest,h esen oteasr en otw orth
had turnedi ntop rized real estate. By contrast,t he securityo f investments, moret hanr ecyclipnagp er,and
thusd ependf ort her ecognition
4 although of concern for the subsidized Eastern economy, was but a secondary oft heirv alueo nt hee conomic
motive for the building the Berlin Wall.4 As the East German head of party entitiest hati ssued themin t he
fWrohmilt ehel eec coonsso qmoufail ciff aimctcorresd- waoprakr-t and state,W alter Ulbrichta,d mittedt o his Eastern Bloc peers, the Wall was tofrsftir stpp llaaccee. .
force - did notp laya keyr ole serve as a curtailmento f East Germans' abilityt o leave the countryw estward.
int hed ecisionto b uildth eW all In the meetingo fW arsaw Pact memberso n August3 , 1961 in Moscow, Ulbricht
(see below),t heE ast German
and the Sovietl eaderships justifiedt he buildingo ft heW all byp ointingi,n particulart,o the loss of labor:
were highlyc oncerned about The enemyi s tryingw itha ll means to exploitt he open borderb etween
Westerners benefitingf rom the GDR and West Berlint o undermineo ur governmenatn d its
subsidized consumer goods and
the effects of the disadvanta- economy,p rimarilyb ym eans of recruitingan d tradingp eople. [...] In the
geous exchange rate between interestso ft he existence and developmento ft he GDR, active
theE ast andW est German
currenci(ees. g.,Z ubok2 4). measures for ending the recruitment of people from our Republic are
necessary. (quoted in Harrison5 5; translationb yH ope Harrison)
Yet,t heW all was noto nlyd esigned to preventt he concretea nd physical
removalo f people fromt he East.The movementt hatt he Wall was to limitw as
also ofa morev irtualk ind,a s in sections wherei ts structuresd id not
adequately obstructs ight,E ast Germana uthoritiesp ut up special screens,
called "Sichtblenden,"t o restrictt he view across the East-West border
(Hildebrandt4 8). By screeningo ut the others ide oft he bordert, he builderso f
theW all also soughtt o curtailt he agency oft he look.A ftera ll, seeing is a
participatoryac t thatm ayt ranscend,e ven ifo nlyt o a limitede xtent,m aterial
barriersA. s atavistic as the German-Germanb orderf ortificationm ayh ave
seemed to some, it provideda comprehensivea nd effectives hut-downo f
exchange between East and West thate ven took intoa ccount contemporary
s sensibilities oft he look.s
This contemporarsyen sibilityis T
especialelxyp resseidn t hew ork The purpose and directionalityof t he BerlinW all also distinguishesi tf rom
ofM ichelF oucaultw, hose the rampartso fa nciente mpiresa nd medievalc ities and estates in another
theoreticizatioonf t he look,o r essential respect,n amelyt he bilateralc onsent fort he delimitings tructure.
gaze, as negotiatinpgo werh as
greatilnyf ormetdh ec urrent As ancienta nd medievalw alls were builti n ordert o defendt he communityor
preoccupationof m ediat heory feudal household against the "hostile outside,"i t is inconceivablet hatt he
witthh es pecular. defense architecturew as welcomed byp rospectivea ttackersa nd plunderers.
In fact,t he walls were necessary preciselyb ecause maraudingg roups could
not be expected to restrictt hemselvest o a certaind emarcation.B y contrast,
21
the BerlinW all would not have been builtw ithoutt he consent oft hat" hostile
Theyco uldns'wt itcghe arsw, hicpho seda budgetaprryo blem. RubenW ea ren owd evelopinargc hitectuprraol jecttsh awt on't a tighetx planatiaonnd,I thintkh ant owy ouc ans ayw herteh e
Thea rchitectuprraol jectdso n'ht avet het ypeosf b udgets beb uilfto rt woy ears.Thper ojecthsa vene'tv enb eena warded businesiss - itsp ositioans a conduit.
attachetdot hemth aat concepcta rd oes.Thien dustkrnyo ws yeta ndw ea red esigninsgol utionLsi.k te hea irf orcme emorial, RubenIt g enerattehs ec haracteorfa no rganizattiohnai ts
howd emandiintig s t om akae concepcta r.Thaer chitectural theyar ei nvestitnigm aen de nergfyo rt hem aterirael searcahn d sensedim mediatbeyloy t hebru sinesIsf.t heyk nowth eir
projeccta nnotta ket heo verheaodfo vertimaned t ripltei moe n designa,n dt hedyo n'ht avet hep rojecyte t.Thaeir f orche asn't businesws ellt,h ewy ililm mediatseelnys et hatth eyn eedy ou,
weekendinso rdetro f inisfha bricatiaonnd,o na costm anage- said,"okh,e re'tsh em onelye,t sg oa heada ndd oi t."Thheyav et o Otherwiwseh,a atr ey our ealldyo ingY?o ua ree verywhaenredn, o
menlte veilt w asa verydi fficuflitn ancicaol nstraibnetc ausew e dot her esearcfhi rstto s ee howm uchit 'sg oingto c ost.The placel inketdo a senseo fa businestsh aatd dressesso men eed
wereli nkeidn trinsictaollt yh ist ypoef p roduction.hYaovue designh asi ncredibclhea llenges,.Tcohme panhyas t ob ev ery int hew orlWd. en eedt of ocuos nt hec ompanitys eltfh, ep osition
thesev eryh ighp aida utomotmivaen agetrhs aht adt hee xpertise flexible.Wcaen 'th avet woh undreemd ployefeusl ltime.The ofa rchitectuasr ae busineshs,o wth eybo thfi tt ogetheHro.w
thawt en eededb,u tt heb udgecto uldnh'ta ndliet . abilittyoo utsourictee masn dh aver elationshwipitsph e ople doesC TEKop eratiet selwf,i thiints elsfo, as nott of alli nto
RubenIt g oesb ackt ow hawt es aide arlierIt,' st hed ifference outsidoef t heo fficies key.Awndit htinh aatr ei ssueso f problemofsf ocusinogn s ustainintegc hnologies.Tish naott o ur
betweesnim plfya bricatianngd b eingin volviendt hew hole confidentiality, coreb usinesOs,u rc oreb usinesiss innovation.
procesAs,u tomotwiveg eo tt hec ontracbtu,i ltth ec ard, one.That TammIyt' sl ikea parenwta tchina gch ildg row,.Yseoeu t he
hasn othintogd ow itthh ep rocestsh aits followebdya rchitec- mistakeans,d y ety ouk nowan du nderstatnhdat th oseh avet ob e Transcriopfat conversatbioentw eeRnu beSnu area nd
turoe fficeasn dc onstructcioomn paniteosd eveloapn u nder- madea ndl earnefdr omin o rdetro m aturaen db ecomwe iser. JennifSeirlb erEt.a steSru ndaCyT, EKof fices,TusCtAin ,
standinogfb uildinage,s thetiacns dm aterial. Therwe asn oc learm arketipnlgan o rs trategy.Aitwn das a lways RubenI t hintkh asto meo ft hee ssentiaell emenotfst hisp iece
TammIyt' sa timelinInea. na utomotcivone tractth,e m omeynotu vertyr icktyoa nswetrh eq uestion"wdhoay to ud o?"Yokui nodf havet od ow itthh inkionfgt hea rchiteacst a buildetrh,e c ontrol
gett hep rojecyto ua reo utt heh opa nde veryogneet si nvolved. scratcyho uhr eadf ora momeanntd s topb ecauset herwe asn ot thatth eyh ave.Thpeo sitioonft hef ieldr ighnto wis sucht hat
PERSPECTA 36 EVELYN PREUSS THE WALL YOU WILL NEVER KNOW
outside" - i.e.,t he Westernw orld- as recents cholarship has shown. Even
thought he figureheadso f boths ides, the Soviet premierN ikitaK hrushchev
and U.S. presidentJ ohnF . Kennedy,p rofessed to liberatet he worldf rom
imperialista nd communists lavery,r espectivelyb, othw ere morec oncerned
withp reservingt he stabilityo ft heiro wn domain than withv anquishingt he
inimicalc amp. Givent hese prioritiesb, othW esterna nd Eastern ideologyh ad
been putt o a shatteringt est byt he Eastern bloc uprisingso ft he 1950s.T he
Eastern leadership invalidatedi ts legitimationo f representingt he workers
when it opened fireo n them,a nd the West's non-interventioinn the bloody
suppression oft he 1953 East Germana nd the 1956 Polish and Hungarian
uprisingsl ikewiseb etrayedi ts stated intentt o rollb ack communismA. s a
consequence, the Western leadership came to fear uprisingsi n the East as
mucha s theirE astern counterparts( Freedman 74-6).
Seen in this lightt, he Berlinc risis was about moret hanA llied access
rightst o an indefensiblea nd economicallyu nviableh alfo fa city:t he open
bordert riggereda n ideological crisis forb oths ides and called intoq uestion
the status quo. Providinga n opportunityto escape Eastern prosecution
forp oliticald efiance,t he open borderp rovedc onducivet o open protesti n the
East, which,i n turn,r evealed the Westernw orld's lack ofe ngagementi n
overcomingt he Cold War stalemate. While bothG erman governments
adhered to the doctrineo f reunificationt,h e breakdowno ft he post-war
divisionw ould have destabilized theirr egimesa nd, consequently,d id nots uit
theiri nterests.F ort heW est, it harboredt he riskt hatt he West German
6 conservativesw ould lose theirp ower in a pan-Germane lection due to the
oEasCt Gfermh an pKaropnaogAancdngar deeatrlyel saltnroodngara nut i-ceapitralis tb ias in all of post-warG ermanya nd the poignant
exploitbeodit nhtv hoerl v emre ne argumentst he communistsl eveled against the Adenauer governmento n
with industrialists and bankers account of its Nazi legacy.6 A re-unitedG ermanyw itha n influentiaclo mmunist
who had helpedH itleirn top ower partyc ould have meantt he loss ofW esternG ermanyi n militaryan d economic
and thef actt hata staggeringly
highn umbeorf o fficialsin t he alliances, as a strategic vantage pointa nd as a lucrativem arketf orA merican,
West German government had Frencha nd Britishp roductsT. he Eastern leaderships likewisew ere keen on
served the Nazi regimei ni mpor- sealing the borders,s ince the constantf luxo f emigrantst o the West sharply
tant functions. A compilation of
theibr iographiwesa sp ublished clashed witht he propositiono f Eastern ideologyt hats ocialism would
undetrh ea uspiceso fE ast materializet he dream of mankinda nd providef ort he happiness of every
German authorities in the 1965
eBraunb(uNcahti onalrawt)h, ich individualA. partf roms everelyd rainingt he East Germane conomyo f labor
stronglyin fluenced the West and expertise,t he massive loss of skilled workersa nd intelligentsiaa lso
Germasnt udenmt ovemenotf challenged the regime'sp romiseo fa brightf utureb roughta bout byt echno-
1968
Th(eS eclotnsasmer)v, atives' apprehen- logical progress,w hichs upposedly gained in potentialo nce unleashed from
sion of the communists' political the restraintso f profit-orientecda lculations, and byt he consciousness of
momentum is reflected int he workers,w hichu nders ocialism had advanced to placingt he commong ood
1956 decision by the West
German supreme court to ban beforet he individual'sg ain, accordingt o the government'sd octrine.
tohe cormmugnist- paaar tuysn( KP Dn)-i zcaotnAilthosoutngh-i ostr b eucau-se - the rhetorico f both East and West builtu p
and,p reemptively,a ny successor antagonisma nd threat,e ach side needed to removet he tangible realityo ft he
tional. The court's reasoning took otheri n ordert o lend credibilityto its self-projectionsT. hus, boths hared a
note of the KPD's impressive common interesti n puttingu p a screen thatw ould sheltert heiri deologies
election results of the Weimar
era,a nda lso hadt oa cknowl- from "the real." The ideological double bind, however, prevented both East and
edget he historical parallel of the West fromo penlyf orcingt his solution.O nlyo nce the Wall had gone up did
KPDb einogu tlawed byt heN azi the East Germang overnmenctl aim to have acted in self-defensea nd reverted
regime twenty-threey ears
earlier (cfT. schentschwehric)h, to the pre-modernju stificationf orb orderf ortificationbs yl egitimizingth e
cionmt umrunsnui sptsp wliiethtdh e veiEd aenstcGe eofr man Wall as a protection against Western intrusion. Similarly, ideological
considerationso bliged the West to refrainf romv oicinga pprovals traight-
22 Wmeaskt Geueprm, any'qs uasi-fascist forwardlya,s Lawrence Freedmanp ointso ut:
ii
.... .. ... .....
;
.?':l.:.' .L. ~:~ %:-":" '~ ... .
? '? ... .. . S ,... ... ...
ShelMl useuimns tallatitohneN, etherlands ii
....
Lefto:r iginraeln dering
Centeirn:s tallatvioienw
Rightp:a nelC Ac rated
PERSPECTA 36 EVELYN PREUSS THE WALL YOU WILL NEVER KNOW
The logical solutiont o the Berlinc risis, one thate ventuallyc ame about,
was to reinforcet he divisiono ft he cityt o matcht hato f Germanya s a
whole. But this was nota n outcome thatt he responsiblea llied powers-
Britain,F rance,a nd the UnitedS tates - could readilye mbrace, let alone
propose [...] Itw as hardt o argue forp eople beingf orcedt o livew ithina 9
closed, communist state. (60) Only the meaning of the Wall
However," backdoord iplomacy,"in telligencea nd subtle politickingal lowed wclaasi mcoendtt ehstaettd h: ew Bheilrel tinhWe Walle st
boths ides to reach a consensus regardingt he optimalw ay out oft he incon- stood fort he failureofcommu-
venients tand-offo, r rather:a wayt o maintaint he stand-offb yf orestallingi ts tnismhit sotp raeo vtitdreap do evqur atheetlfydo cr
dissolution.I n fact,K hrushchevm ayh ave been inspiredb yh is Washington its the East mairtained
caitizens,
intelligencew hen he demanded thatt he fortificatiofno rw hicht he East people'sa chievements against
German leaders had been petitioningh ims hould take the shape ofa wall. the incursions and sabotage ofa
capitalismd ecayedt o thed egree
Accordingt o Soviet reports,s everal officialsw ithint he U.S. government, ofd esperationo.Tnhlyset and-
especially the chairmano ft he foreignr elationsc ommittee,S enator William offi nt he Wall's 28-year history,
Fulbrighta,n d the special assistant to the presidentA, rthurS chlesinger Jr., teahreno ende Cthhaetc,k ipno Oicntto bCehr ar1li9e6 i1t,s
had discussed "something like a wall" (Zubok 28). Kennedy also considered a notorietcyon, cernetdh ea ccess
wall a possible solution( Freedman7 5), and his noted televisiona ddress of rEiagsht Btose fr Uli.nSa. n cdiv niloiattn h oefi fnisctiiatluts -o
July2 5, 1961,w hiche xtendedA llied demands onlyt o West Berlin,r epre- tionof theWall itself. In fact, the
sented, accordingt o his special assistant forn ationals ecuritya ffairs, Walwl as so sacrosanctt ot he
McGeorge Bundy,e ssentiallya green lightf orc losing the border( Harrison Westthati td id noteven
intervenwe heni ts toodt o lose
52). Fulbrighgt ave an even moree xplicitg o-ahead in a TV interviewf,o llowed face over basic humanitarian
bya n article in TheN ew YorkT imeso n August 3, when he declared thatt he concerns. When Peter Fechter,
7East had everyr ightt o close its borders.7T hese statementsw ere made just in an EastG erman who had trietdo
Similarp ublics tatementsw ere escape overt heW all inA ugust
issued byS enatorM ikeM ans- time for a conference of the Warsaw Treaty Organization from August 3 to 5, 1962,b ledt o deatha fterb eing
fielda, notheri nfluentiaDle mo- which, as a later CIA report speculated, approved the construction of the shotb ya n East Germanb order
crato n theF oreignR elations Wall.8 And indeed, Khrushchev and his East German colleague Walter guard,U .S. forces,d espitteh eir
Committee (Freedman 75). occupation rights,u ndertook no
Ther eactioonfsU .Sg. overn- Ulbrichth ad been eagerlyw aitingf ort hese signs, as Hope Harrisonp oints effotrotr escuteh ey ounmg an
t1mh9e6en B1te,o1 r flliifkni ecbwioarildstsree oer tfsh loeencs tAeeaudalgit nu lsgetao 1sft3 a,t hmtochureti gS(oi5tn2fc- e4er) l.ti he leadboerresrhsoinp s of bothA" ginussti1d3,ea"lt ahnodug "ho utside" - despite later tohvoeuret mhcre,y c hionueg lro asuyetwo ffoits reh hvienelypr a arlhd soo ufr s,
tacita pproval oft hem easure. political gestures - agreed on the Berlin Wall as a demarcation line and, indeed, (smyse1r8 4).
"Mitci sG aes owreglBlet u on hdaavyge i rteh eadpthp eant depended on it for their self-definition, it did not represent a contested space Yee ttt, h edd uolu bleb ii ndoo fc onnffcl-i ct-
earlya,s theidr oingan d their in the same way as ancient or medieval fortifications did.9 Once again, the ingi deologicnale eds continued
responsibi(lqituyo"t eidn F reed- Wall emerges as a moderns tructurer athert han an archaic one. Likea prison toc rystalloinzte h eWallI.t
omriagni7n 6al;) e. mSecprhetaasrisyi not fh Stea te wall',sm it r eflectsa consensus between the "inside" and "outside" governing sonfeuxnetd edth set efcuht otomooiyi c
DeanR uskth ougthhtec losing bodies thate nables an inclusion/exclusionst ratagemd esigned to legitimate ofK enned1y9's6 s3p eech
oft he bordersw ouldr elaxt he the hierarchies on both sides. The management of the prison acts as the betrayIsn. o rdert ol egitimate
cKreinsinse sdiytu wateinotn s,a ainlidn gP r(7e6s)i.d ent agent oft he governingb odyb eyondi ts walls byr unninga social institution eafafisf airsK, eenndn edy fiidnoo verE ahs tern
Two yearsl ater,K ennedy that harbors those defined as "unsocial;" and, conversely, the "outside" one hand,t hat" [f]reedomis
presentedh imselfle ss leisurely governing body uses the extraterritorial space of the "unlawful," symbolically indivisible, and wheno nem ani s
in his attitudet owardst heW all, enslaved,a ll are notf ree."O n the
whenh es pokeo na statev isitt o contained withint he prison,t o legitimatei tselfa s representingt he law.A s otherh and,h e hasto claimthe
WesGt ermaannydW esBt erlin. Wthiteh wthael ls oft he palrlhisaovingd istinguisphrtv henoFsoer w ho "acknowledgeo r have the law" Wethstast'rs ue paseorni,h oero rievtseyotrr ht steE o tahset .
iWtsietlhfta hs eaW n ealflf heacv tiinvgaepn rdo dvuernaabblleea bnfnrc/ocmktp h ose who "failo r lack the law,"t heym aterializea nd confirma binary abundance/plaarcakd igamnd
screen,h e could now assertt hat logic that presents a model for the abundance/lack paradigm, which the Iron asserts his own freedomin t he
"thisg eneratioonfG ermanhsa s Curtain and its concrete successor facilitated and reinforced and on which nextp aragrap"ha:s a freem an,
fnaamcrillineta snh det r higeihnrt attuoit o nin t heir sbuobtsht iEtaustteedr n" eaqnuda lWityes"t earnnd itdheeo Wlogesiets "fwreereed obmas."e1do: for "the law," the East Reaeg parnri ee rpiena gtweKdth ewnsn l hedoy b'isn d
lastingpe ace."8 However,p risonw alls noto nlya ct as a demarcationb etweent hose lBarpansdewe hnebnus rpGgeaa ktei nonga at tsthaet e
See "Curren5t7". assigned with opposing terms, but also as a screen that hides the reality of visitin 1 987e,x tollingth e
the "inside" fromt he "outsiders" and vice versa. In the prison,t he inmate freedom of the Western world
23 loses her inbdeicvaiudusealt ihtayenc darc, fcoerrt ahlwce p oaoulslets ss cirdeeern,m soo uldtsh inertpo te hres gonenaelh riisct coatreaygn odr hyoe fr fdeosrpa iltl eo" fthmh ise aq cnuonketsietnnidot.in"oo nf tf hreaeWtd aolml
"lcriminall
,"
architechtasv eli ttluen derstandoifnt gh ep oweorf m aterial. RubenT hisi s a differebnuts inesrse lationshhiapp peninang, availablteo t ransititoonp hysicrael ality.Thiesr a eg api n
Theries a bigd ifferenbceet weean m asonb uildeirn m edieval indistinguishaasbsolec iatiownh erae f abricatpolru gsin toan understandingit.A'snn odto nlyu nderstandtihnepg h ysical
timeasn da buildetro day.Thweraesa deeps ignificantcoe architectuorfafl icIet,i st echnologifcaabl ricataonrd a rchitec- formtsh, ep hysicmal ateriablus ta lsoh owit g etsb uilatn dt he
thingbsu iltth en- thes ignificanocfem ateriaanl db uildinIg . turaolf ficteo gethAers i. mpleex ampilsew henon ea rchitect pricinagn dt heb udgeatl,l o ft hosec oncernSso. whayt ouh ave
don'wt antto t alka bouCt TEKan ds ayt hawt ew ilgl ob ackt oo ld walkisn h erea nds eesw hawt ea red oingan dt eni deasc ome is a necessarfyu sionN.o ot nlya partnership.
timeWs. ea reg oingb ackt oa ni deologoyfb uilding.Wareer e- intoh erm indIm. aginteh isr elationshesitpa blishbedet ween RubenT hea bilittyou nderstamndat eriala-n dw hwy oultdh at
establishitnhgeh istorpico sitioonfa rchitectuinra e d ifferent architecatnsd f abricatoarnsd,i maginteh ise xponentially bea surprisicnogm ment.Theaxta'cst lwyh atth ea rchitecdtisd
lighft,o cusinngo to nlyon h owy oun eedt ob uildan dt he explodintoga wholsee rieso fi deast hawt ilcl hangteh ew ayw e beforLe.o okat t hek nowledtghea tL eC orbusihera da bout
processeosf b uildinbgu,t a lsoo nb roadac cesst ot hel atest see architecture. concretHee. w asa ne xperWt. hawt ilgl ivea rchitectua rheu ge
technologies. JennifSeor d oy out hinikti sa bouut nderstandiCnlgea?r ly edgei s realizintgh ed ifferenbceet weetnh enan dn ow.Yocouu ld
JennifOern eo ft het hingtsh awt eh avet oucheodn i s CTEKas a architecrtisg hnto wh avet hep owearn dt het oolst od esign becomaen e xperotf a specifimc ateriianlt hep astN. owy our
newt ypoef c ompanTyh.e raer en ewr elationshdipevs eloping complesxh apes. expertinsee edts ob eo nw hamt ethoadrse b eingu sedt o
betweeCnT EKan dt hep rofessioofna rchitect-u rree lationshipsR ubenT od esignth em. manipulattheem aterials,Ycaonu' tju stl earnab oupt lasticIst. 's
thaatr en oto nlym utualbleyn eficibalu,t a lsow itah p ointende ed JennifReri ghtto,d esignth emSo, wea pproacthh ec omputer abouwt haits makintgh eset hingcsh ange.
tow ortko getheBre.c auseo fl egali ssuesi,t i s veryh ardto t ake ands ay,"wI anat rootfh alto oklsi kew ater,"aintdd o esb ecome JennifIenrt hesec hangecso metsh ea bilittyoc hallenge
ont her esponsibioliftr yes earcahn dd evelopmeSnot w. hayt ou a rootfh alto oklsi kew atebr,u tw ithli ttluen derstandoifnt gh at structuarned t raditioncoanl ceptosf s paceW. ec ant alka bout
haveis a marriagofet wot ypeosf c ompanitehs abt ecomeas thinags a reality.Tihst aht ep ointth aatr chitectuisra et r ight thef uturinea fewd ifferewnaty so:n ei st hea ctuabl usiness
newt ypoef a rchitectuinrg ee nera-l researcahr chitecture. nowa, l oto fs choolwoirsk di gitabl,u tr arelayr et het ools modealn, dt heo theirs a boumt ateriaanl dc hanginsgp ace.
PERSPECTA 36 EVELYN PREUSS THE WALL YOU WILL NEVER KNOW
designs fort he futureh, erf ace and her body,a nd preventsh er interaction
witht he "outside." It rendersh era nonymous,b lank,a nd, byt he same token,
an ideal surface forp rojection.S imilarlyt,h e BerlinW all dissimulated "the
real" behindi t,l eavinga void to projectu pon.T hus, Ronald Reagan, for
instance,c ould paradoxicallyr elyo n the Wall's unyieldings hieldingq ualityi n
1987,w hen he demanded thatt he Soviet premierM ikhailG orbachev "tear
downt his wall."W ithoutt he screen thatt he Wall provided,i tw ould have been
plain forE asternerst o see thatt he "wonderfugl oods oft he Ku'damm[ the
most exclusive shoppingd istricto fW est Berlin],"w hichR eagan unabashedly
advertisedt o them,w ere also out of reach form ost of his fellowA mericans,
who,a ftera ll, lived in a countryb eset byr ecession, unemploymenatn d
cutbacks in social spending.I ndeed,t he highestn umbero fa pplications for
emigrationt o the West came fromt he southeast of East Germany,1w1 here 11
In this area, the per capita rate
antenna receptionf orw esternT V and radio stations was nota vailable. While uwndhaoe ertootkh e
broadcasts ofW estern unemploymenstt atistics, news about political exfcpreupci atipngat hof p etitioning
scandals and reportso n social conditionsc ould have putt he chimerao f foerm igrat(iwonhi chin cluded
12 - Westernf reedomi ntop erspective,12so utheasternersr emainedu ndisturbed tdhecel laossssif oicfa otnioen's ojofbt,h seoecnitali re
AlthougchE ast German media by these glimpses ofW est German realityT. hus, theyc ould,t o a greater familya nd, potentially,i mprison-
theyl acked credibility,b ecause extent than other East Germans, project their own utopia onto the blank that ment) was about 50 per cent
Easterners noted theiirm preg- the West representedt o thema nd accept the Westerns elf-acclamationt hat Ghiegrhmerat nhay(nc fin.L tehine ermesatn onf) East
nation with ideology.
Reagan so brazenlyp racticed.T he Westerns elf-projectiono nlyn egated and
compensated fort he deficitso ft he Eastern regimet o the extentt hat its own
realityr emaineds hielded fromv iew.
This example shows that itw as not modernm edia, butt he lack thereof,
that provokedp eople to move. It hintsa t the factt hat modernityis note ntirely
about movementa,s Ladd claims, buta lso about arrest.F irsto fa ll, mobilityf or
some does notm ean mobilityf oro thers:
Fort he inhabitantso ft he firstw orld- the increasinglyc osmopolitan,
extraterritoriwalo rldo f global businessmen,g lobal culturem anagers
or global academics, state bordersa re leveled down,a s theya re
dismantledf ort he world'sc ommodities,c apital and finances. Fort he
inhabitantso ft he second world,t he walls builto f immigrationco ntrols,
of residence laws and of "clean streets" and "zero tolerance" policies,
growt aller.( Bauman 89)
Second, even fort hose belongingt o "the firstw orld,"m obilityt,o a great
extent,t urnso ut to be an illusion.A lthought he morem obilee lements of
society mayt raverses pace, theye xperiencet he differenlto cales as one
uniformp lace. The FourS easons, Hiltonsa nd Holiday Inns,a nd the travel
industryf orw hicht heys tand, create a moreo r less generic and exchangeable
productt, hus minimizingth e encounterw itht he differenatn d foreign( 90).
Witht he substitutiono f local specificityf ora new global homogeneitys,p ace
becomes ineffectuaal nd virtuala nd crossing it meaningless. In the same
vein,t he hybridizatioonf elite culture,t o whicht he traveli ndustryc aters, has
also not resultedi n mored iversityb, uts imilarlyr eplaced old, local standards
withn ew,e xtraterritorioaln es. The factt hat "[t]he centres of meaning-and-
value productiona re today exterritoriaaln d emancipated froml ocal con-
straints"( 3) aggravates the loss of spatial meaning.O n account oft hese
changes, the abilityt o overcomes pace has lost significance.I t does not
mattert hato ne is in a specific place, whent he places have become exchange-
able. Thus, the mobilityo ft he consumera ge renderst he subject,t o a certain
24 extent,i mmobile:w herevers he tries to go, the place remainst he same.
RubenS o manqyu estionabs ouot url ivews ilbl ea ddresseidn thougWh.e l'l s ee.
thee xploratioofnm ateriaPlsr. operltiyn esa reg oingto b e WaiterH owd oy ouw anyt ouerg gs?
questionende,i ghborhocohdasn getdh, er uleos fc itiessc ruti- MackyS crambleIdst . hapt ossible?
nizedI'.m a bigb elieveirnt imen,o tin t hem easuroef h ourasn d WaiterW ellh, owd oy ouu sualleya ty ouerg gs? 11.
minutebsu,t in v erysi gnificatnhti ngtsh aht appeinn l ife.There MackyO bviousIl dyo n'eta te ggsv eryof tenSc. ramblewdi,t h
areb igc hangeisn t hew orlrdi ghnto wS.e archinfgo ra nswertso sausage.
whaits t akinpgl acei s verydi fficualntd,t hef uturise u nclear. TammBye lgiumwa ffwlei tfhr esfhr uiStt. rawberries.
, a)a~ OL
Then exfte wy earws ilbl er eallfya scinatifnogrt hew orld. RubenF ruit.
I amj usts trugglitnogf igurteh isw holteh inogu tH. owd ow e RubenW ej ustf inishea dp rojecwt itGh rafAtr chite-c ttsh e
creatteh eser elationshiTphs?e ries nop recedensot ,t heo nly TangerinBea ra tt heT reasurIsel andH otel.Tharec hitecstasw S-l- ion
wayo ft estinigs a s weg ot hrougacht uapl rojecttsa,l kintgo theG agosiasnc ulptubryeF ranGke hrbye,c ameen amorwedi th
architecatnsd c ontractoarnsd,t ryintgos ee howw ef it. ita,n dw antteodd os omethliinkgte h aSt0. t hebya sicalclyut it
inh alfs,t oodit u pa, ndr eshapeidna verysi milawr ayf or
Transcriopfat conversatbioent weeRnu beSnu are,Tammy enclosuroefs ittinagr easi nt her enovatioofnt h en ewb ari nt he
EdmondMsa, ckMy cClearaynd J ennifSeirlb erCt.i truCsa f6, TreasurIsel andh otel.
TustiCnA, JennifTerh eyar et ranslucefnibt erglapsas neltsh alto ck
JennifIe'lrlh avep ancakebs,u ttermpialnkc akes. togethaetrt hes idesl,i tf romab ovea ndb elow.
MackyI' llh avet hes andwicIh d.o n'kt nowif I wilfl inisiht RubenT hatp rojecetn capsulatseos m aniys suesa boutth is
PERSPECTA 36 EVELYN PREUSS THE WALL YOU WILL NEVER KNOW
Finallyt, hose who cannot affordt he traveli ndustry'sp roducts,i .e.,t hose
whom Bauman calls "inhabitantso ft he second world,"m edia offersa n
equally homogenizings ubstituteT. heir lack of mobilityis compensated byt he
fluxo f images thata re frameda ccordingt o the ever-samea spect ratio oft heir
televisions et. Witht he ease of a click,t heyc an switch between virtualw orlds
of an ever-samed ramaturgyT.h e onlyc onditionf ort heirt raveli s arrest:t o
stay put in fronto ft he screen.
In summaryt,h e BerlinW all was nota measure against the age of global-
ization,b uti ts erved as a prototype- perhaps morev isible and tangible- of
the "spatial segregation,s eparation and exclusion"t hat,a ccordingt o Bauman,
are "[a]n integralp arto ft he globalizingp rocesses" (3). By restricting
movementt,h e Wall immobilizedc itizens intoa n audience. Renderinga part
oft he worldi naccessible, ita llowed fort hat unknownt o be turnedi ntoa
projectiona nd to be viewed as the dichotomousO thero f a desired self: the
Wall closed offt he fictiono f propaganda from" the real."F unctioningl ikea
screen, itt urnedb othE ast and West intoa kindo f movie hall.
How the Cold War kept Elton John warm, or why Orientalism sells
Indeed,t he Cold War was likea greatt imea t the movies. Enemye ncroach-
menta nd imminentn uclear carnage revampedt he horrorg enre.A peasant
turnedw orldl eader who mistookh is shoe fora rhetoricald evice made for
good comedy,a nd summitp rotocolso ft wosomes set offt wisted- in any
case, note ntirelys traight- romance plots.T he Cold War intertwinedp olitics
withc ulturalp roductiona,n d the appeal and reach of its projectionsi s
perhaps best seen in the consumer-drivenp opularc ultureo ft he West.
EltonJ ohn's 1985 song and video clip "Nikita,"a highlys uccessful example
csiaulwc 13Wc ieteshss t oft ehisr popn cult ure,1l3i terallyc onfigurest he Wall as a convenientd ividet hat
a
"Nikitas"c ore majocro mmer-p rovidesf ort he dichotomousp rojectiono f self and Other.T he Western
audiences. For 18weeks, the title protagonisti,. e., EltonJ ohnh imself,is portrayeda s highlyi ndividualw, illful
stayedi nt he U.S. charts, for and expressive,14w hereas the East is imagineda s uniformd,o cile and
fourit,r ankeidn t het opt en.I n
theU .K.," Nikita"b ecamea repressed.A s ifi llustratingth e example sentence fromW ebster'sE ncyclopedic
number one hit,s taying for 13 UnabridgedD ictionaryo f theE nglishL anguage," Totalitarianismp uts fetters
weeksi nt hec hartsI.n t heW est upon the imagination"( 526), or Ronald Reagan's pronouncementth at "[t]he
Germacnh artsi,tr emaine2d0
weeks, nine weeks among the totalitarianw orldp roduces backwardness because itd oes such violence to
top five and three as number one the spiritt, hwartingth e humani mpulset o create, to enjoy,t o worshipT. he
(Domicke). Its success was
almostg lobal:i nS outh Africa, totalitarianw orldf indse ven symbolso f love and ofw orshipa n affront,t"h e
for instance, itt opped the charts song characterizes East German borderg uards - i.e.,o rdinaryc itizens
and stayed therefor 18 months, servingt heirm andatorym ilitaryd uty- as "tins oldiers in a row."Thisc oncep-
becoming Elton John's greatest
hite vetrh er(eS amson). tion oft he people across the Wall as non-humanl,i feless,a ntiquated toys is
14 - visualized as a constant parade-marchingd rill,w hichr enderst he soldiers as
Indeed, accordingt ot he visual mechanical puppets devoid of humanf eelingsa nd incapable of individual
story of the video, his individual-
isma nd assertiveness must forms of expression. Civilians, similarly, only appear as huddled figures of
have swayed the Britisahut hori- an indifferengtr ayish-brownischo lor,b undledu p in winterc lothes and
toes hurryingt hrough the background, while, in the foreground, the Westerner sits
surveillancei hes ysutaeme osf, vtioe let him relaxed in an open car, sportinga t firsta glaringr ed sweater and, later,a silk
wear a hat and sunglasses on a jacket withb rightlyco lored printsT. he camera framest he Westernera s a
passport picture.
star, as the centerpiece of the display, in frontal medium close-ups, or, as in
the nights cene, spot-lighteda nd the sole focus of attention.H e stands fort he
25 individualw ho can live out his inclinationsa nd desires unencumberedb ya ny
.?...... ..
...
------
.....
GrafAtr chitects,TanBgaerrL,io nsAe ngeles
Leftt or ight:
originfallo oprl an;
originfailb ergltasess tus sin1g5 't alli nterlockpiannge ls;
sreerviiesosecf daf n inoappldyo el syicgaunrs bino1gnh5 aec taoetm -fpoorucmpnuadernd ve elmsd; olds;
PERSPECTA 36 EVELYN PREUSS THE WALL YOU WILL NEVER KNOW
restraintsw, hilet he Easterners remaina nonymousa nd faceless, and appear
onlyi n largerg roups. Implyingth att he East is streamlinedb ya pervasivec ult
of leadership,t he East Germanw oman who EltonJ ohnf ancies is called after
a Soviet politician( rathert han Susanne, Peggyo r Jacqueline,l ikeh er real-
lifem odels). By contrast,t heW esterneri s freet o choose even his own name.15is Dwhcie1h5g iah anet(t,e
Singingt hroughouth, e asserts his voice, whilet he Easterners- including orn ReginaKe
igas sn meto
Nikita- have none. Stamped bya homogenizingc ulture,t he Easterneri s EltonH erculeJs ohnin 1 972.
stuck in her uniforman d caged behinda fence,w hilet he Westernerc an slip
intod ifferenrto les and identities:h e can cross the border- fist-faced guards
permittin-g change intoa differenste t of designerc lothes fore verys hot and,
donninga fez in the last scene, even assume a supposedly morea uthentic
Easternness than Nikitah erselfr epresents.
Poignantlyil lustratingth att heW esterns elf-imageu nfoldsi nt he projection
oft he Other,E ltonJ ohn'ss ong addresses, likeR onald Reagan's speech at
the BrandenburgG ate, an audience beyondt he Wall. While Reagan, in part
staging his own importancee, xplicitlyr efers" [t]o those listeningi n East
Berlin"a nd "[t]o those listeningt hroughoutE astern Europe,"t he video
picturest he addressee of EltonJ ohn'ss ong as an East Germanf emale border
tshorene 1t6N fgoei inkr sigt uarad.1 6H owever,t he song's onlyl ine about Nikitai n the thirdp erson reveals
Except for one line of the refrain, herc haractert o be a fictitiouss tand-inf ora ny demarcated,a nd ultimately
the second personsi ngular exchangeable, Other:" Nikitai s the others ide of any given line in time."I n
throughouWt.i th questions and otherw ords,t he Otheri s notg enuinelya ssociated withE ast Germanyo r the
command-like structures,
thet exta ppeartso a ttemap t Eastern Bloc, butw ithw hateveri s distanta nd inaccessible enought o serve
dialogubeu,t f ailsN: ikita as a contrastingp rojectionf ord efiningt he self.
remaisnisl ent. Consequently,t he relationshipb etween self and Other is construeda s a
The auralr endersa different
meaninfgro mt he visual, as contradictionb etween a lovinge mbrace and the impossibilityo ft he relation-
Nikitias a ctualaly m alen ame, ship. Reagan's "AlthoughI cannot be withy ou" followss uit to his "warmest
one ofthe
aSnovdioetf cUonuironse's, esvhorkewesd est greetingsa nd the good willo ft he American people;" in the same way,E lton
leaders,N ikitKah rushchev.The John'sf riendlyin vitation",J ustl ookt owardst heW est and finda friend,"
ambivalence of gender may accompanies his convictiont hat "I'll neverk nowh ow good itf eels to hold
hreifslo ewct Enlst eoxnu Jaol honr'ise sntrtuagtgilaoet nwt ihthe yyno u." These incongruous constructions necessitate one another, since the
time, but this problematisic imagineda ffinityis predicatedo n the distance thatf orestallst he encounter
Oprtohjeerc,t uetdi loiznitnog tt hhee Estaesrteeronty pe of with" the real" and, therebyl,e aves space forp rojection.
the feminized East. The necessity ofa clearlyd efinabled ividef ort he projectiono f self and
Othera lso transpiresi n the way bothR eagan and EltonJ ohni maginet he
East/Weste ncounter.E ltonJ ohne nvisionst he fulfillmenotf his relationship
to Nikitaa s dancing,a ttendings occer games, playingc hess and bowling,a nd,
to Reagan, "[i]nternationasl ports competitionso fa ll kinds"a re a matter
"close to myh eart."S ports contests compare quantifiablep erformancest o
determinew innersa nd losers; theyd o nott o develop a commonp roject,b ring
about a synthesiso f contradictoryp erspectives or fostera sense of reciprocal
responsibilityl,e t alone a shared horizono f ideas. The regulatedi nteraction
between participantsa ccordingt o strictlyd efinedr ules preventsr elationships
witha dynamico ft heiro wn,a nd the sort of contact ita llows does not
compromise,b uti ndeed reinscribes,t he distance between self and Other.
EltonJ ohn'sc onstant photographingo ft he Eastern protagonisti n the
video furtherem phasizes this distance. Objectifyingt he Other intoa n image,
his photographyg rantsh imp ower,b ecause itc onfersa gency upon the
Westernera nd renderst he East manipulatable,a s the finals cene oft he clip
illustrates:t hrougha montageo f still images, EltonJ ohnm akes Nikitas mile
26 at himi n the same wayt hatS ergei Eisenstein wakes the lion in
Battleship
industSroy m, antyh ingasr er elevan- tt hel acko fu nderstand- JennifAerb solutely. citytr, ietdo p asst hep anelass wallsB. yc allintgh emw alls
ingr ighnto wo nm anlye velisn a rchitectuanrdec onstruction, RubenD efinitely. insteaodf a rtp anelos rd ividertsh,e wy erer equiretdop assa ll
andr egulatioofnn ewm aterials.Tchome plexiintty h esep rojects MackyB eyontdh aitt c ouldb ea na ttitudipnralo blewmi thin thef irce odes,
makeps eopljeu stg oc razy.Awnedg ott ot hapt oinBt.e cause architectuitrsee lfE.s pecialalytt her egulatolreyve lw, heryeo u RubenT hisi sw herae l oto ft hingcsa nb ea ddresseMd.a ke
thingws eresu bmittteodt h ec ityth awt erein correacnt,d t hec ity havep eoplteh aatr en otin terestiendb roadenitnhge ihr orizons, suret hawt henw eg ot ot hec ityw eh avea strategoyfh owth ings
wasu nderstanduabplsyea tb ouitt .Thaer chitecdtisd nk'tn ow andt heries realr esistantcoet echnology. workW. eh avet ob ecomvee rykn owledgeaabbloeu cti tyco des
whatto d o,E verybowdayse xpectindgif feretnhtin gfsr omth ese TammIy t hiniktg oesb ackt ol iabilitbye,c auseu ltimattehlye andp assintgh eset echnologies.
panelsE. venw ed idnq'tu itek nowho wto d ealw itsho meo ft he planc heckp eoplpe uta stamopn t hed rawingans,d i tc omes MackyIt i sy eta notheorp portunfiotroy u tsourcing.Tihse re
regulatiobnus,ta lreadwye h avea muchcl earepr icturoefw hat backt ot hem.Thdeoyn 'wt antto t akeo nt hel iability. someonwe hok nowhso wto m akiet h appenIt.s eemsu nlikely
itt aketso b uilsdo methliinkgte h ias,n dt hec onsultawneta sr e RubenW eh ada meetinogn e xactltyh isis sueE. verybowdays thaatn a rchiteocrtf abricatcooru ldd oa llo ft heset hingrse ally
goingto n eed.Thwish olpe rocesws ass o informativewThhoel e tryintogs peculatoen w hethtehri sw oulwd orkC.a nw eg et well,
timIe w asp ullinogu tm yh airt,h inki"nsgo mebojduyst t aket his througEhv? erybodryes'sp onsew,"oI uldnsi'tg nt haitf I wast he RubenIt i s a generasle rvicteh aCt TEKn eedts remendouWsley .
thinagn dm aksee nseo fi t." cityp lanneMr,e"a ninogn, cey ous igni t'sy ourre sponsibiIlnit y. needt oh avet her ighcto ntactans dc onsultanthtsa wt ec anw ork
JennifEersp ecialolynt hep arto ft hec ityof L asV egasw, here LasV egast,h eyar eh ighlpyr eoccupiwedit fhi reis suess,o they witihm mediately,
ther egulatioanrse s tringeanntd,i ti s ofteena siert os ay"no"to focutsr emendouosnlr ye solvinthga t.Thweyil ilm mediatteellyl JennifEersp ecialnlyo wth apt eoplaer ec allingon y out od oj ust
experimentationar.Tevh eeryyr e luctatnote mbracteh esek inds youn o.Theayre n otg oingto a pprovite, . that.
oft hings, JennifTerh isi s ani nterestipnrgo jecatls ob ecauset he RubenIn o urc ontracwtse v ersyp ecificalsltya tte hawt ea re
MackyD oy out hinikti s a liabilitisys ue? architecntso,tf ulluyn derstandtihnebg e stt ackt ot akew itthh e notr esponsibfloerp assincgi tyco des.Thaer chitecatrse
PERSPECTA 36 EVELYN PREUSS THE WALL YOU WILL NEVER KNOW
Potemkin.H avingf rozent he East intoa n image, he literallyp rojects Nikita
and her "ten tin soldiers" on the wall,e ditingt he color slides likea film
directorA. gain, the casting,e ditinga nd viewingo ft he image is predicatedo n
a distance betweent he viewera nd viewed and the inabilityo ft he viewed to
intervenei n the process of its manipulationT. he factt hatt he controlo vert he
viewed Other impliesa disregardf ori ts live dimensions is dissimulated by
breathingl ifei ntot he inerti magery:o n his own privatew all,t he Westerner
picturest he Easterners milinga t himi n a gesture ofa ffirmation.
In the same vein,t he carefullym aintainedi gnoranceo ft he Otheri s not
acknowledgeda s a shortcomingo ft he self,b uta ssigned to that unknown
itself.C onsequently,E ltonJ ohnp erceives a majora symmetryo f knowledge
between himselfa nd the Easterner.W ithg od-likeo mniscience,E ltonJ ohn
seems to knowe xactlyh ow littlea nd cold Nikita'sw orldi s: "Hey Nikitai s it
cold / In yourl ittlec ornero ft he world/ Youc ould rolla roundt he globe /A nd
neverf inda warmers oul to know."B y contrast,h e findst hatt he Easterner
"will neverk nowa nythinga bout myh ome."T he six-foldr epetitiono ft he line
"Nikita,y ou will neverk now"h ighlightts he ignoranceo ft he Othera s a crucial
prerequisitef ort he projection,a nd shows how,e ven withint he shortl engtho f
a pop song, the attributiono f self-lacko nto the Other becomes a celebrated
ritual.
Justa s the credibilityo ft he cinematic projectiond epends on the self-
effacemento ft he cinematica pparatus and technique,t he West had to
dissimulate its own implicationi n and benefitf romt he Wall in ordert o lend
the impressiono f integrittyo its self-imageT. hus, the same men who tout
theirf reedomt o shape the worlda ccordingt o theiro wn designs noto nly
renouncet heirp oliticala gency,b ute ven theira bilityt o act. The "Nikita"v ideo
captures this paradox propoundedb y Kennedy'sa nd Reagan's asserting their
own freedomw hilea scribingt he Wall entirelyt o the Soviets in the curious
ups and downs of EltonJ ohn'sc ar window.R isingt hreet imes on cue witht he
words "youw ill neverk now"l ikea semi-transparentr,e flectingw all, it
illustratest he curious reflexivitoyf t he barriert hatc reates the Other by
preventingu nmediatede xperiencea nd, thus,p recludingk nowledge.A s the
windowi nsertsi tselfb etween Easternersa nd Westernersa utomaticallyi,t
also mirrorts he failureo fW estern leaders to acknowledget heirp olitical
investmentin the Wall: the Western protagonists eems unable to controlt he
separation between himselfa nd the Other.I nstead,t he screen-likew indow
moves - withs light,b utt ellings urrealism- independentlyo f EltonJ ohn's
apparenti ntenta nd actions. Event houghh e sits in his own car, he is apparently
a powerless victimi n the face of his own (political) technology- an innocent
frustratedi n his good intentionst o bringl ove and freedomi ntot he world,a
free man unfree.
Yet," Nikita"'sa ssignmento f lack and abundance along an East/West
trajectoryo verridest his glaringp aradox. Exemplifyintgh e image-making
made possible byt he Wall, itg ains its persuasiveness throught he strategyo f
commerciala dvertisementT. he song and the video, relayingt he Western self-
projection,a ssert a lack in the prospectivec ustomeri n ordert o markett he
promiseo f its suture.A ccordinglyb, oth EltonJ ohn's "Nikita"a nd Reagan's
BrandenburgG ate speech portrayE asternersa s livingl ittle,u ndistinguished,
restrictedc, old and unfulfilledli ves. In contrastt o Easterners' dreary
existence,W estern identitye merges as a productt hatw ill bringa bout a more
27
complete self.T o remedyt heirl ack and attain the colorfulc, arefreea nd
'! ii
57)
"
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iI ,
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Righth: andd etails howinCgN Cm illinpga th