While I was preparing my PhD on elites in Central and Eastern Europe, I had read a book by Julia Friedrichs, where she is addressing the issue of elites as such, and as a beginner in issues regarding the German society, I found it interesting. Meanwhile, in the last seven years, my knowledge advanced and got more and more insights about the local elites, either from media reports or other books, or by using my own network of friends and acquintances.
This relatively recent work by Julia Friedrichs goes into more specific details, with a focus on the genesis of financial elites, those members of big money families, ruling big stores like Rossmann or the Oetker and Aldi or Neckermann. More interestingly, it also describes the legal and financial incentives system offered by the state to the rich class, such as low taxes or various exemptions.
There is a high incidence of wealth reproduction in Germany, particularly in the Western side, not few of them subsidizing the cultural adventures of bohemians stays-at-home in Berlin neighbourhouds such as Prenzlauer Berg or Kreuzberg. In most cases, this helps and it is nothing wrong with parents trying to help their children to survive in a very complicated world. Very often though, the money creates responsibilities and obligations and takes the freedom out too. Children who are forced to follow the steps assigned from birth by their parents in order to be able to continue the management of their companies or empires. Marriages of wealth in order to keep the wellbeing or even increase it. Some may conform, some may rebel, some can even comit a crime to get their freedom back. Wealth remains and people get even richer.
This is the way of life, some may say and nothing to do against the trends. I don't think it is nothing wrong to secure a safe future for your children, particularly if you went out ot nothing. No one wants to be poor and the Socialist-Communist 'ideas' were proved wrong - as within the communist elites themselves people were doing the same transfer of wealth and prestige and sometimes the political positions too. Most of Friedrichs impressive work is describing the situation. Some comparative suggestions with the US or Japan are made, without entering into too much details, although as we can read in the conclusion, there are mounting fears that Germany may end up as a sort of Japan elite-wise. Meaning that the economic resources will be concentrated into the hands of some powerful families that can control the economy and the society.
The work opens a lot of interesting paths to further investigation, but it also did not cover many areas, such as the big real estate families or the very conservative auto-motive industry or some 'von' families from the South of Germany. What is the departure point of these new elites? At what extent these financial elites are coincide with the cultural and political ones? I was also expecting more charts and statistics featuring the mobility and distribution of elites too.
A book worth reading but quite incomplete. Maybe the next one will bring more light into the life of the shadowry life of German elites, and not only.
