STASILAND- AUTHORS TECHNIQUES

1. Using the information presented and the relevant passages on p.147 and p.246, describe Anna Funders motivations for writing Stasiland.Anna Funder’s used the example of the public pool to show Germany as a whole.

2. What was Funders main aim? What type of stories was she searching for?She wanted to document the stories of the people who suffered under the Stasi. She also wanted to hear the stories from the people who believed in the regime.

Non-fiction: accounts of real people, places, objects, or events. Types of non-fiction include articles, autobiographies, biographies, essays, and memoirs.

Fiction: the class of Literature comprising of imaginative, works of this class, as novels or short stories, etc.

3. In your opinion, is ‘Stasiland’ a work of fiction or non-fiction? Provide an explanation with evidence. I believe that Stasiland is a work of Non-fiction as Funder does tell the stories of real people in real times in history.

3b.Why is it classed as literary journalism? It combines accounts/ interviews of real people with elements of fiction such as descriptive writing and symbolism.

4. Why does Funder advertise for ex-Stasi officers and interview them for her story, when she was initially only interested in Miriam’s history?

5. What is the significance of each ‘character’s’ story being separate?Each is given their own space. This is humanizing strategy contrasts sharply with the degrading and demeaning tactics employed by the Stasi that are so vividly illustrated in the text.

6. Why are the stories in Funders text arguably in the ‘wrong order’?

7. Write down three quotes with page numbers for each of the following:a. Anna’s first person narrative.

b. Sections where the interviewee’s voice seems to ‘take over’.

c. Historical facts presented in the novel.