Next you will need to note how the East German government tried/failed to meet those promises. Keep the distinction between historical reality and the fictionalized world presented in the films, but note how the “stories” told on film helped illuminate the “history” and whatever other fact-base sources you use.
I’m working on a history writing question and need support to help me understand better.
5-6 pages/1000-1,200 words , including Chicago-style footnotes.
you are required to submit a bibliography with your paper that lists such sources used by: name of website, page/article read, date created, “publisher” – if you can figure it out, and the URL.
You title of the essay, which is the “problem” to be addressed:
Communism’s failure to live up to its Promise
For example :“Fall of Communism in Eastern Europe, 1989” web-article published by The Office of the Historian, US Department of State, (date unknown). Accessed 16 November 2020: https://
“Life in East Germany, 1949-90” – YouTube video posted by Jacob Abigor TV (16 May 2019), 17:33 minutes. Accessed 16 November 2020: https://www.
The two movies you will use:
Good Bye Lenin! (2003)
The Lives of Others (2006)
Note: if such web-based research only serves as background to help you understand better the issues, you do not need to include in the paper itself (e.g. footnotes), just in the bibliography. However, if you draw an insight or some specific “fact” from this background reading/viewing, it should be “grounded” with a footnote. Be sure not to plagiarize
(In a well-ordered composition they should be addressed where appropriate: “problem”/thesis in the introduction, then supporting paragraphs with illustrations/examples, and then a conclusion.
You will need to establish what Communism “promised” its citizen-subjects. (This echoes what you should have done in the first paper, but here you will be focusing on the promise of Communism more generally, in the East German context.)
Next you will need to note how the East German government tried/failed to meet those promises. Keep the distinction between historical reality and the fictionalized world presented in the films, but note how the “stories” told on film helped illuminate the “history” and whatever other fact-base sources you use. Your thesis statement, and thus the main narrative of your essay, should represent both your understanding of history (why Communism failed to live up to its ideals/promise) and your “way of knowing/learning” (your observation of how the films helped you make sense of that past – and, yes, if you want, you can use first person “I” statements in this paper if that helps you keep it focused.)
