In 1961, Soviet Germany conceived the idea of the building of the Berlin Wall and therefore started to assemble this historical monument. Of the twenty-eight years the wall stood, it established maturity, witnessed innocent deaths and later took on annihilation, thus eventually being taken apart and demolished. Even today, pieces still stand and are on display all around the world as a symbol for the catastrophe. This took time, endless efforts, constant rioting and one very important speech. Ronald Reagan's proposal at the Brandenburg Gate was not only to take down the literal wall that partook in the division and the imprisonment of the East Berliners, but to diminish the metaphorical barrier between the suppressed lifestyles of the citizens. …show more content…
From the beginning to the end of his speech he showed an understanding of the equal hardship and unification between both gender spectrums. “Every [one] is a Berliner, forced to look upon a scar” (AmericanRhetoric.com par. 6). The scar, or wall, follows the jagged outlines of the old twenty seven mile long division between East and West that will forever affect German history and the citizens that were forced to empower through communist ideology. Even more than that, it would affect the generations to come. “There is no better way to establish hope for the future than to enlighten young minds…” (AmericanRhetoric.com par. 29). The children of this time were the future generation and the ones that still thrive today. For those who grew up in either side of Berlin, this experience could have been frightening to a younger child. Towards the end, he refines his statement of unity and strength by saying, “But my friends, there were a few things the Soviets didn't count on: Berliner Herz, Berliner Humor, ja, und Berliner Schnauze” (AmericanRhetoric.com par. 12). From their open hearts to their inability to lose their sense of humor. Everyone is equal and everyone should be treated that way; no matter man or woman, East Berliner or
He describes the physical wall in Berlin and the wall of restrictions that divides the rest of the country as a scar, insinuating that it is ugly, unnatural, and undesirable. In the third paragraph, he creates a connection between the people of the east and west by describing them as, “fellow countrymen,” and then by saying, “Es gibt nu rein Berlin. [There is only one Berlin.]” This connection poses an enthymeme that the people on both sides of the wall have common goals: freedom, security, and prosperity. Reagan then links these goals to the rest of the world by saying, “Standing before the Brandenburg Gate, every man is a German separated from his fellow men. Every man is a Berliner, forced to look upon a scar.” Until this point, Reagan’s audience appears to be limited to Germans. By unifying these groups, he compels the world to empathize with their German brethren. The pain and suffering felt by the German people becomes that of mankind, encouraging the rest of the world to understand wanting the wall to fall on a personal level. This is further exemplified in the next paragraph when Reagan declares, “As long as this gate is closed, as long as this scar of a wall is permitted to stand, it is not the German question alone that remains open, but the question of freedom for all
Because of the state of Germany’s economy, Hitler portrayed himself as the saviour of Germany, the man that was going to restore the respect that their forefathers had earned & installed. However, under no uncertain terms was he going to do it alone, he pr...
In the year 1961, the building of Berlin Wall called upon disasters in Germany. United States controlled the west of Berlin while German Democratic Republic held the East. Being stuck under the rule of day to day terror, people from East Berlin were making their way to the West Berlin. West Berlin was a safe spot and freedom checkpoint in the middle of terror. To stop the moving of East Berliners, the East German government decided to build a barrier that limited and halted the East Berliners from leaving. But the battle to control Berlin between, the United States and the Soviet Union, had been taking place since after the division of Germany. The German Democratic Republic wanted better control over its people to spread its communist ideas
...speech to the world where he was quoted as saying, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” The speech was given at the Brandenburg Gate in West Berlin (“Mr. Gorbachev, Tear Down This Wall: President Ronald Reagan”). This speech signified the beginning of the end of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. President Reagan’s foreign policy tactics are another reason why he was a great president.
Ronald Reagan adeptly utilizes Ethos Pathos and Logos in his Brandenburg Gate address, he attempts to sway the audience of the importance of success of the marshal plan and western values as a whole, and convince the leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, to open up the barrier which had divided West and East Berlin since 1961. Reagan begins his speech by addressing the people present and recognizing the “freedom” and “feeling of history” of the city of Berlin has. He makes his first reference to previous speakers by saying, “Twenty four years ago, President John F. Kennedy visited Berlin, and speaking to the people of this city and the world at the city hall. Well since then two other presidents have come, each in his turn to Berlin. And today, I, myself, make my second visit to your city,”( Reagan 361) His first usage of pathos is when he addresses the east berliners who were separated from the westerners by the Berlin wall and tells them, “I join your fellow countrymen in the West, in this
Food and water is available but protection is not, all there is are open appartments and you hope that you have a basement to hide from the bombs and the Russian soldiers. The buildings were new until the bombs were dropped, then some become rubble and all the rest standing have become safe havens until the sun has set. At that time the red armies bellies are full of vodka and they are on the prowl for women. The main themes in the A Woman in Berlin is rape, survival and protection which all tie in together. Her survival is relied on her befriending a high ranking Russian soldiers, because they have the power to stop the violation of their women. With the daily struggle to collect water and ration food because you don't know when it will all be gone. The people of east Berlin has changed the way they live and act, everyone will keep their belongings close and secure. Food and coal are to be protected at all cost, as water can be obtained through the well but the journey can be risky if you go
He mentions the very recent violence that occurred in Selma, Alabama; where African Americans were attacked by police while preparing to march to Montgomery to protest voting rights discrimination. Without mentioning this violent event that occurred a week prior, there would not be much timeliness to his argument, and it wouldn’t have been as effective. The timeliness of his argument gave the speech a lot more meaning, and it heightened the emotions of many who heard the address. He is appealing to the emotions of many American people, both Congressmen and ordinary citizens, to encourage them to support his cause. He reminds us of all of the Americans around the world that are risking their lives for our freedom. He refers to them as “guardians of our liberty.” He also address the problem as the whole nation should be concerned not just the north, the south, or the African American
In 1987, the President of the United States at the time was Ronald Reagan. Everyone has their differing opinions when it comes to judging the quality of the job a President has done. There are many factors that cause biased opinions. Some of these include your political party affiliation, your viewpoint on the social matters that were going on at the time, and your economic standing. Despite all these varying viewpoints, people can agree upon one thing when it comes to Ronald Reagan. That one thing is that in 1987, when turmoil due to post-war political issues split Germany into two sides, Reagan made a speech that is known as “The Speech at Brandenburg Gate” that altered the course of history. His exalted rhetoric was highly touted at the
In May 15, 1967, Reagan give forceful, public call to knock down the Berlin Wall, but this was one of many such proclamations during that first quest for the presidency. On May 21, 1968, in Florida, and again the next month in Wyoming, Reagan stated that instead of America unilaterally giving wheat to the Soviets, the Soviets should make a major concession: America should tell the Soviets, “We could deliver it better if the Berlin Wall wasn’t there!”
He was beaten and starved for months at a time and never let the Nazi ’s break him. His faith and hope for a better life were constantly in his mind. He would not let his dreams be crumbled no matter how far into the ground he was pushed.
The end of World War II was the beginning of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States. The Soviet Union had control over East Berlin, which was governed by a communist government and the United States had control over West Berlin, which was regulated by a democratic government. Both countries wanted full control over Berlin, so the Soviet Union set up a blockade on the West but was unsuccessful. The Berlin Wall was then built to stabilize the economy of East Berlin, which meant that fewer people could escape the east to live in the west. In the article “The fall of the Berlin Wall: what it meant to be there,” by Timothy Garton Ash, he highlights the feelings of no longer having a “iron curtain” segregating both sides of Berlin.
equality. His speech highlights his main points of his speech while using rhetorical devices that the
In conclusion Berlin Wall was an important milestone in the growth of the Cold War. It was the expansion that represented the thinking of a determined Communist system. Western Capitalism, which was more powerful, eventually defeated the system. The massive wall that did so much harm to a country was finally destroyed, and the people of Germany could now live the way they all wanted to live. They could live the life of freedom. Since the fall of the Berlin Wall East Germany has went through a lot of changes, and it still is not easy for all of the people in East Germany. But no matter how hard it is for the people of East Germany now, it is better than being alone and separated from their families, friends and rest of Europe.
The Berlin Crisis reached its height in the fall of 1961. Between August and October of that year, the world watched as the United States and the Soviet Union faced off across a new Cold War barrier, the Berlin Wall. In some ways, the Wall was Khrushchev’s response to Kennedy’s conventional buildup at the end of July, and there were some in the West who saw it that way. However, as Hope Harrison has clearly shown, Khrushchev was not the dominant actor in the decision to raise the Wall, but rather acquiesced to pressure from East German leader Walter Ulbricht, who regarded the Wall as the first step to resolving East Germany’s political and economic difficulties. The most pressing of these difficulties was the refugee problem, which was at its height in the summer of 1961 as thousands of East Germans reacted to the increased tensions by fleeing westward. But Ulbricht also saw the Wall as a way to assert East German primacy in Berlin, and thus as a way to increase the pressure on the West to accept East German sovereignty over all of Berlin.
The Berlin Wall was constructed in 1961 by the GDR (German Democratic Republic - (East Germany) under the pretext of keeping out the fascist enemy infiltrating from West Germany. In actual fact, the wall was built to keep in the population of the GDR, many of whom were fleeing to a better life in West Berlin and other European Countries. Armed border guards were sworn to protect East Germany however they knew that a better life existed on the other side of the wall. The photographer, Peter Leibing, captured the moment in history, when the first GDR Border Guard , Conrad Schumann, finally got the courage to desert his post and leap over the barricade (at that point still a barbed wire fence).