Why is the Berlin Wall considered a symbol of the cold war And why do you think it represented something different to East-Berliners and West-Berliners What do you think it meant to them?

Answer 1

The Berlin Wall that separated West Germany form East Germany symbolized the Iron Curtain, as Churchill described, that was created between the communists in East Europe and those opposing communism in West Europe. To both Germans in the East and the West the wall represented the sovereignty over their country. To the West-Berliners the Berlin Wall symbolized the Soviet's obsessive need for control and for the East-Berliners it was a barrier they could no longer cross to work in the higher-paying and better living-standers west.

Answer 2

The Berlin wall did not separate West Germany from East Germany, it separated West Berlin from East Germany. West Berlin was never part of 'West Germany', it was a separate entity under military control of the USA, UK and France.

'West Germany' and 'East Germany' were names used by the English-language media. The correct names of the two countries were 'Bundesrepublic Deutschland' (BRD or Federal Republic of Germany) and 'Deutsche Demokratische Republik' (DDR or German Democratic Republic).

The border between the BRD and the DDR was further west and was part of the Iron curtain.