Children's Literature in West and East Germany

In considering the topic for discussion, "children's literature and the imagination of the state," the two Germanies provide excellent examples of how so-called "free" and so-called "unfree" states constrain writers for children and ultimately the imagination of the child in different ways. To understand the constraints exercised by these two states and how writers have reacted against them, I want to depict the general development of children's literature briefly in both states since 1945. Interestingly, though Germany before 1945 was largely known for its Kinderfeindlichkeit, both the Federal Republic of Germany (commonly known as West Germany) and the German Democratic Republic (commonly known as East Germany) gradually produced some of the most innovative and stimulating literature for children and young adults in the world. To a certain extent, this remarkable production is still evident today.

The development of children's literature in the Federal Republic, founded in 1949, can be roughly divided into three phases: 1949-1967, conservatism; 1968-1977, progressive experimentation; 1978-present, retreat into fantasy and cautious experimentation. After the war, though there was an apparent break with National Socialism, the contours of children's literature did not alter much, and many of the same writers who wrote under and for the Nazi regime continued to produce works for children. In addition, the new writers and publishers were constrained by the Cold War and conservative policies of the new state, which, under Konrad Adenauer, did not embark on a campaign to end authoritarianism in public institutions. This is not to say that the state decreed general guidelines that publishers and writers were obliged to follow, but it did create an atmosphere and market conditions that influenced them. The Adenauer government can best be characterized by a laissez-faire attitude toward children's literature. Publishers, librarians, writers, and educators were given a free hand in determining the type of children's literature that was to be produced. It should be understood, however, that this free hand was determined to make money and uphold the standards of a state that sanctioned exploitation of workers, restoration of capitalism, social and political amnesia regarding the Holocaust, and repressive and elitist education for children. Consequently, children's literature either shied away from controversial social and political problems, presented idyllic pictures of a serene German past and unreal images of a rosy present, or catered to traditional, classical tastes. Such conservatism eventually drew a sharp reaction from the younger generation, and with the rise of the student movement and anti-authoritarianism in 1968, day care centers, women's groups, youth collectives, and university workshops on progressive education were formed, and along with this development came the establishment of small socialist publishing houses for children like Basis Verlag in Berlin and Weissmann Verlag in Munich. Moreover, the larger publishing houses like Rowohlt, Beltz, and Arena opened the doors to progressive writers. Using linguistic, optic, and artistic experiments, the new writers of children's literature dealt with such topics as racism against foreign workers, anti-Semitism, sexism, authoritarian institutions, and oppressive family conditions. Traditional fairy tales were radicalized by such gifted writers as Janosch (Horst Eckert) and F. K. Waechter to raise questions about the illusions of becoming a queen or king to rule over others. The emphasis in the new children's literature, no matter what genre, was on the depiction of the problems encountered by young people in West Germany which would allow young readers to see the contradictions in their society. Thus, not only did writers try to capture the authentic concerns of the youth, but teenagers themselves and even younger children were encouraged to produce their own literature or accounts of their lives.

However, by 1978 with the growing conservatism and disillusionment among progressive forces, there was a shift in the realistic, confrontational attitude of writers and publishers. This shift is best marked by Michael Ende's bestseller Unendliche Geschichte (The Neverending Story, 1979), a book which celebrates the power of symbolism, mysticism, fantasy and, to a degree, self-survival tactics. The retreat into linguistic and symbolic experimentation is connected to a social atmosphere...