Disappointment as a Political Resource: On the Cohesion of the West German Peace Movement During the 1980s

Willy Brandt's "Take a Chance on More Democracy" [mehr Demokratie wagen], Helmut Kohl's "Flourishing Landscapes" [bluhende Landschaften], Barack Obama's "Yes We Can" - recent history is full of examples for high-flying hopes followed by bitter disappointments. But what consequences did this have for democracy as such? By way of the example of the largest protest movement of the 1980s, this investigation looks into which disappointments resulted from a dedication to peace activism and a differing understanding of democracy, what consequences derived from and how the activists dealt with this feeling. Their disappointment is shown to be more than a concomitant phenomenon, since it even served as a resource for political action and an emotional treatment mode for social contingence and complexity.