VOA标准英语2009年-20 Years After Fall of Berlin Wall Memorie

By Sonja Pace
Berlin
02 November 2009

 
Berlin Wall
For nearly three decades the Berlin Wall was the symbol of the Cold War - it divided a city and in effect the entire country. And then on November 9, 1989 it crumbled² and with it Communist East Germany and the Cold War itself.

On the outskirts³ of Berlin lies the Glienicke Bridge. It spans the Havel River and connects Berlin to the neighboring city of Potsdam.

Its idyllic⁴ setting belies⁵ a darker history. During the height of the Cold War, it was known as the Bridge of Spies - where communist and western officials exchanged secret agents that had been found out.

Walking across the bridge now, Potsdam resident, Haio Koelling remembers the stories about the prisoner exchanges. "Yes, I think the exchanges took place right here," Koelling says, " The secret agent would be sent out from one military checkpoint to the other - in plain view of both sides. But for us civilians⁶, as of 1961 the bridge didn't exist anymore. We couldn't get close. You could see it from over there, but the Wall blocked it."

The Wall ran along the shoreline. Construction began in August 1961 by the communist East German government as a physical barrier through heart of Berlin. But the Wall eventually encircled all of West Berlin - cutting it off from East Berlin and the rest of East Germany.
 
A longer boundary divided the entire country into East and West. It symbolized⁸ the Iron Curtain - the dividing line between the West and the East or Soviet⁹ bloc⁷.

It was a source of tension and there were constant fears the Cold War might erupt into full blown conflict.

 
Jochen Staadt
But, with the passage of time, cracks began forming in the communist system, says political analyst¹⁰ Jochen Staadt of Berlin's Free University. "There were some people who knew that the GDR, East Germany is in a bad situation, the economy was going down," he says, "As we now know our secret service they knew a lot about that."

A more obvious sign of change came in the mid¹¹ 1980s when Mikhail Gorbachev - a reformer took power in Moscow. That, says Staadt, was crucial. "When Mr. Gorbachev came to power in the Soviet Union there were signs and one of the most important signs was that people in the Soviet Union started to talk publicly about reunion of Germany," Staadt said.

There was a difference of opinion between Moscow and East Berlin, and the Kremlin's support for East Germany's communist leadership was waning¹², says Staadt. And, it was a split, western leaders, like Ronald Reagan, tapped into. "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this Wall," Mr. Reagan said.

Change was afoot as President Reagan uttered that now famous challenge in 1987. Reform movements gained ground within the Soviet bloc and by the summer of 1989 East Germans found a way to the West through Hungary and peaceful protests spread in East Germany.

While western pressure played a part as events unfolded, key was Mikhail Gorbachev, says political analyst Michael Cox of the London School of Economics. "I think once the Soviet Union, Moscow, Gorbachev and the Politburo have made that decision not to use force then the whole house of cards is bound to come crumbling¹³ down," Cox said.

And crumble¹ it did, faster than anyone had anticipated - on November 9, 1989. The Berlin Wall fell and took with it the East German communist regime.

But what would happen next was no foregone conclusion, says Cox. Crucial negotiations¹⁴ would follow about the new structure of Europe and how Germany would fit in.

"Because don't forget in 1989 and 1990 when Germany unified¹⁵ many Europeans were worried and therefore it was extraordinarily¹⁶ important for very, very complicated diplomacy¹⁷ to engage Germany within Europe and as an Atlantic player," Mr. Cox explains, "Don't forget that Gorbachev in the end had to say yes. It was Gorbachev in the end who had to say we will not use force. In the sense I would say that in the end whilst looking for the key figure in all of this it was Mikhail Gorbachev."

Germany was reunited in 1990, the Soviet Union was dissolved by 1991, the Cold War had drawn¹⁸ to a close. 

Back on the Glienicke Bridge, Haio Koelling talks about the changes in his life. Under the communist government he worked as an architect and city planner for Potsdam. After the Wall fell he started his own architectural firm. He's now retired¹⁹, still lives in what was once East Germany. But he can walk across the Glienicke Bridge now at will - no barriers, no checkpoints, no walls.

 

1 crumble   

vi.碎裂，崩溃；vt.弄碎，摧毁

参考例句：

• Opposition more or less crumbled away.反对势力差不多都瓦解了。
• Even if the seas go dry and rocks crumble,my will will remain firm.纵然海枯石烂，意志永不动摇。

2 crumbled   

（把…）弄碎， （使）碎成细屑( crumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 衰落； 坍塌； 损坏

参考例句：

• He crumbled the bread in his fingers. 他用手指把面包捻碎。
• Our hopes crumbled when the business went bankrupt. 商行破产了，我们的希望也破灭了。

3 outskirts   

n.郊外，郊区

参考例句：

• Our car broke down on the outskirts of the city.我们的汽车在市郊出了故障。
• They mostly live on the outskirts of a town.他们大多住在近郊。

4 idyllic   

adj.质朴宜人的，田园风光的

参考例句：

• These scenes had an idyllic air.这种情景多少有点田园气氛。
• Many people living in big cities yearn for an idyllic country life.现在的很多都市人向往那种田园化的生活。

5 belies   

v.掩饰( belie的第三人称单数 )；证明（或显示）…为虚假；辜负；就…扯谎

参考例句：

• His appearance belies him. 他的外貌给人以假象。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The modesty of their home belies their great wealth. 他们简朴的家使人们看不出他们拥有巨额财富。 来自辞典例句

6 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

7 bloc   

n.集团；联盟

参考例句：

• A solid bloc of union members support the decision.工会会员团结起来支持该决定。
• There have been growing tensions within the trading bloc.贸易同盟国的关系越来越紧张。

8 symbolized   

v.象征，作为…的象征( symbolize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• For Tigress, Joy symbolized the best a woman could expect from life. 在她看，小福子就足代表女人所应有的享受。 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
• A car symbolized distinction and achievement, and he was proud. 汽车象征着荣誉和成功，所以他很自豪。 来自辞典例句

9 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

10 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

11 mid   

adj.中央的，中间的

参考例句：

• Our mid-term exam is pending.我们就要期中考试了。
• He switched over to teaching in mid-career.他在而立之年转入教学工作。

12 waning   

adj.（月亮）渐亏的，逐渐减弱或变小的n.月亏v.衰落( wane的现在分词 )；（月）亏；变小；变暗淡

参考例句：

• Her enthusiasm for the whole idea was waning rapidly. 她对整个想法的热情迅速冷淡了下来。
• The day is waning and the road is ending. 日暮途穷。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

13 crumbling   

adj.摇摇欲坠的

参考例句：

• an old house with crumbling plaster and a leaking roof 一所灰泥剥落、屋顶漏水的老房子
• The boat was tied up alongside a crumbling limestone jetty. 这条船停泊在一个摇摇欲坠的石灰岩码头边。

14 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

15 unified   

(unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的

参考例句：

• The teacher unified the answer of her pupil with hers. 老师核对了学生的答案。
• The First Emperor of Qin unified China in 221 B.C. 秦始皇于公元前221年统一中国。

16 extraordinarily   

adv.格外地；极端地

参考例句：

• She is an extraordinarily beautiful girl.她是个美丽非凡的姑娘。
• The sea was extraordinarily calm that morning.那天清晨，大海出奇地宁静。

17 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

18 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

19 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。