Stasiland Glossary

Stasiland Glossary

Strangulation

strangulation can be described as being the compression of the neck with the intent of stopping the airflow

Untoward

something bad, unfortunate

To repress

in psychology, the term repress refers to the action of rejecting and forgetting painful memories and events from a person’s mind

Socialism

a set of political and economic beliefs according to which every person in a country should benefit from universal healthcare, free education, and universal pension; socialism should not be confused with communism as socialism predeceased communism and is criticized by communism as not being radical enough

Communism

a set of political and economic beliefs, pushing for equality inside a state; communism wants to eliminate private property and transform the state into a big community where everything is owned by the state and where the state is responsible for distributing goods to its people

Fascism

a totalitarian ruling system that came to be during the First World War in Italy; while fascism and communism share certain beliefs, they are different in the sense fascism wanted to create a perfect human and did not shy away from imposing a solo political party in the country

Democracy

a ruling system that allows its people to choose who they want to be ruled by; in a democratic country, all able men and women are able to vote and the focus does not fall on equality but rather on giving everyone the same possibility of succeeding in life

Spezialdisziplin

in this context, it refers to the practices used to recruit new informers by the Stasi

Sow

the act of scattering seeds over a piece of land with the purpose of harvesting plants

Defiant

a person who stands up against what is considered the norm, a rebellious person who refuses to obey authority

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