Permanent impermanence
Mar. 6th, 2025 09:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
qatsiBook Review: In Search of Berlin, by John Kampfner
Unlike many European cities, Berlin doesn't extend back to ancient times: the first records of a settlement are from the 12th century. Kampfner's journey is mostly chronological, with modern perspectives on historical events. Berlin has a hard time deciding what to memorialise and when. Like many capitals, Berlin is not representative of the wider country. Frederick the Great was a gay icon in 1920s Berlin, but his portrait also hung on the wall of the Führerbunker. As a journalist, Kampfner was able to experience both sides of the divided Berlin in the 1980s. There's no Ostalgie here, but it does seem that there hasn't been enough moving on. Berlin's population is still smaller than before the war, yet it also has a permanent housing crisis. Local government stumbles through one financial crisis after another. Kampfner visits various smaller museums and sites, a mixed bunch, run or maintained precariously by volunteers. Infrastructure projects, such as the Humboldt Forum or Berlin-Brandenburg Airport, take forever and spark controversy. In some ways, it sounds just like places closer to home.
Unlike many European cities, Berlin doesn't extend back to ancient times: the first records of a settlement are from the 12th century. Kampfner's journey is mostly chronological, with modern perspectives on historical events. Berlin has a hard time deciding what to memorialise and when. Like many capitals, Berlin is not representative of the wider country. Frederick the Great was a gay icon in 1920s Berlin, but his portrait also hung on the wall of the Führerbunker. As a journalist, Kampfner was able to experience both sides of the divided Berlin in the 1980s. There's no Ostalgie here, but it does seem that there hasn't been enough moving on. Berlin's population is still smaller than before the war, yet it also has a permanent housing crisis. Local government stumbles through one financial crisis after another. Kampfner visits various smaller museums and sites, a mixed bunch, run or maintained precariously by volunteers. Infrastructure projects, such as the Humboldt Forum or Berlin-Brandenburg Airport, take forever and spark controversy. In some ways, it sounds just like places closer to home.