Abstract
On August 13, 1961 the first rolls of barbed wire were stretched across the demarcation line dividing the sectors of the Soviet and Western allies in Berlin. Over a quarter of a century later and greatly fortified, the Wall is one of the most prominent structures in the landscape of the two Berlins. Its prominence, however, is perceived and experienced differently by East and West Berliners. The Wall in West defines and frames the physical landscape. Colorful and approachable for most of its approximate 100 miles, it provides Sunday strollers and tourists with a unique walking route along the borders of the city. Scattered along its length are various look-out towers for those interested in seeing the other Berlin and memorials marking where people lost their lives attempting to escape to the West. The prominence that the Wall enjoys in the physical however, is largely supported by the media and tourist industry. It obscures the fact that the Wall has more or less disappeared in the cognitive landscape, i.e., in the socio-political consciousness of the average West Berliner. With the exception of special events and holidays, when West politicians evoke the Wall as symbol, it has become everyday. And in becoming everyday, it has been more or less forgotten. Reflective of a widely shared sentiment
Published Version
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