CarsonVanPelt EdgebrookSchool

February5,2014 Room2187th

TheBerlinWallArgumentativeEssay
byCarsonVanPelt
TheBerlinWallwasacruelpieceofarchitectureforEastBerlinersandtheirfriendsandfamily. ItwasconstructedtokeeppeoplethatlivedinEastBerlininEastBerlin.Italsodidhorriblethingstothe EastBerlinsociety.Noonecouldgetinorout.TheconstructionofthewallbeganonAugust13,1961 itwasorderedbySovietleaderNikitaKhrushchev.(UnitedPressInternationalInc.,2014)Then, fortunately,thewallfellonNovember9,1989asaresultofademandfromRonaldReagan.(A&E TelevisionNetworks,19962014)TheBerlinWallviolatedthebasichumanrightsofmanyGerman peoplebytakingawaytheirfreedom,preventingthemfromfindingjobs,anditcausedmanytolose theirlives. TheBerlinWallviolatedmanypeoplesfreedom.PeoplethatlivedinEastBerlinweretrapped andcouldnotleave.Familieswereseparatedsopeoplecouldnotgoseetheirfamiliesandtheirfamilies couldnotseethemfor28years.(HowStuffWorks,19982014)Imaginebeingbornwhenthewall wasputup(1961)andnotbeingabletoseeyourrelatives,unlesstheylivedinEastBerlin,for28years! EastBerlinersrealizedthattheydidnotwanttoliveundertheruleoftheSovietUnion.(Technological SolutionsInc.,2014)ItwasverymiserablefortheEastBerlinersatthetime. Beforethewallwasbroughtupovernight,manypeoplewereemployedandhappy.Butthenthe EastBerlincitizenswokeupthenextmorningandpeoplecouldn'tfindjobstomakemoney.Itwasn't onlythatthewallmadeitharderforEastBerlinerstofindjobssomepeoplethathadjobslostthemand becameunemployed.IftheyhadjobsinWestBerlin,theywerecutofffromthosejobs.Thatmadeit

hardforthepeoplesfamiliesbecausetheyneededfoodandtogetfoodtheyneededmoney.Itmadeit hardtotakecareoftheirchildren.(http://berlinwalldebate.weebly.com/effectsofthewall.html) ManypeoplediedduringthetimetheBerlinWallwasup.Therewere138deathsandmostof themweremenundertheageofthirty.(DeutscheWelle,2014)MostwhodiedwereEastGermans attemptingtocrossintoWestBerlinandwereshotbytheguards.Theguardsthatwerewatchingthe wallarealsoincludedinthe138deathseightsoldierswerekilledonduty.(BerlinWallMemorial, 2014)Thereweresomanydeathsinacertainspotthatthereisanameforthatarea.Itiscalledthe DeathStripwhichisastripoflandbetweenEastandWestBerlin. (http://berlinwalldebate.weebly.com/effectsofthewall.html) TheBerlinWallwasusedtokeepthepeopleinWestGermanyfromweakeningthesocialist stateinEastGermany.TheSovietgovernmentthoughtthattheBerlinWallwasagoodideaandwould onlyserveasapositivewaytokeeptheirpeopleinEastGermanyandstrengthentheirgovernment. (A&ETelevisionNetworks,2014)Butinrealityitshowedhowcrueltheywereitshowedtheworld thattheywerewillingtoshoottheirownpeopleiftheyleft.(SultanaBarbecue,2013)Allthatwas achievedwaspoverty,lackoffreedom,anddeath.Therewouldhavebeenbetterwaystokeepthe WestBerlinersfromunderminingthesocialiststate,suchasmakinglaws. Inconclusion,theBerlinWallwasaverybadideabytheSovietgovernmentandtotally backfired.TheSovietslookedliketyrantsandtheEastBerlincitizensweremiserable.Thewallhadonly anegativeoutcome.TheEastBerlincitizenshadnofreedomandwerecutofffromjobsiftheyhad theminthewest.ItwasalsoverydifficulttofindjobsinEastBerlin.Lastly,138peoplediedasaresult oftheBerlinWallincludingtheguardsthatkeptthepeoplefromcrossing.Wecanonlyhopethat

peoplehavelearnedfromthesehorriblemistakesandsomethinglikethiswillneverhappenagain.