German History Research Paper by Ryan Parker
3334798

Dr. Lisa Todd HIST 3095

Mar. 27th 2015

Throughout the 20th century the nation of German went through a number of cataclysmic, and paradigm shifting changes. One of the longest lasting changes to Germany was the division of Germany into two separate nations, the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany), and the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). These two nations were the results of a fundamental difference in political ideals of two of the great nation at the time, the United States of American, and the Soviet Union. Throughout the life spans of these two nations one of the largest concern were the youth; as the future population of both nations, it would be on the shoulders of the youth that the countries ideal would be preserved or forgotten. During this time the influence of Western culture was permeating throughout most of the world, and both Germanies were not excluded. Throughout the examination of the youth, this paper will attempt to expose the way in which western culture, specifically the music from the west, affected the youth of both nations. One of the earliest accounts of western music impacting German youth comes from the musician Udo Lindenberg, who recounts the story of how Elvis changed his life in 1957. In his story he recounts how the music was entirely different from all the music he had herd before, “I wasn’t sure what it was about, but this hiccupy singing and electrifying music rocked right through me, and I ran into the kitchen, grabbed some pots and wooden spoons and drummed along.” Lindenberg continues to explain how Elvis gave his generation something of their own, everything else could be claimed by the older generations, but Elvis was a young man’s game. With Elvis, Lindenberg felt like his generation