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Precarious Calm
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In Berlin, the portrayals of the negative emotional effects of the city ushered in attempts at “reform.” Doctors, real estate developers, and city clerks in the German capital penned publications in which they praised the positive effects of suburbs and physical exercise. Berliners were advised that through activities like breathing fresh air, gardening, and exercising the body, they could strengthen their nerves and bring back calm, positive, and controllable emotions. This notion of emotional betterment drove the spread of several gymnastic and sport clubs, as well as the creation of a number of new suburbs that mushroomed along the fringes of the city. While these developments came with a universal promise of improving Berlin as a whole, a closer look at the practices of emotional reform shows that they often served to rearticulate dividing lines of class and gender.
Title: Precarious Calm
Description:
In Berlin, the portrayals of the negative emotional effects of the city ushered in attempts at “reform.
” Doctors, real estate developers, and city clerks in the German capital penned publications in which they praised the positive effects of suburbs and physical exercise.
Berliners were advised that through activities like breathing fresh air, gardening, and exercising the body, they could strengthen their nerves and bring back calm, positive, and controllable emotions.
This notion of emotional betterment drove the spread of several gymnastic and sport clubs, as well as the creation of a number of new suburbs that mushroomed along the fringes of the city.
While these developments came with a universal promise of improving Berlin as a whole, a closer look at the practices of emotional reform shows that they often served to rearticulate dividing lines of class and gender.
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