Sprache und politisch-ideologische Erziehung in der Deutchen Demokratischen Republik. (German text);

The division of Germany after World War II into two contrasting political-economic systems has had incisive consequences for the development of the German language. Significant differences, primarily lexical and semantic in nature, can be found in the official language of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the German Democratic Republic (GDR).;As a framework for the study I have discussed the basic principles of Marxist-Leninist language theory which views language as both an objective reflection of social-political environment and as an indispensible tool of socialist propaganda and agitation. I have examined selected representative school texts and excerpts of didactic literature which serve as vehicles of political-ideological information.;The use of language in these texts, as a tool of political persuasion, even coercion, bears many similarities to the language use of German officials during the Third Reich. In fact, totalitarian regimes of Fascism and Communism seem to have particular need to harness the power of language in their attempt to legitimize their rule and maintain and increase their power. Common characteristics include semantic confusion through the use of polysemy, preference for "black-white" descriptions of complex political issues, and the dominance of a uniform Party terminology.;Although it can be justifiably argued that language is employed as a tool of political education, power and persuasion in Western democracies, the centrally planned and carefully controlled official language of a socialist country such as the GDR provides extraordinary potential for use and abuse by government authorities. In the case of the GDR, I argue, language is used as a manipulative tool in the effort to support and defend the ideological basis for Communist rule, and at the same time to diffuse public questions and doubts regarding common social-political contradictions in a socialist society.;This dissertation examines lexical-semantic developments in the language of education in the GDR. The political-ideological education of the GDR's youth is a major concern of the Socialist Unity Party (SED). Language is employed explicitly and systematically by GDR educators in the attempt to impart "socialist" values to students, while developing a "socialist consciousness" as part of the complete "socialist personality".