The film “The Third Man” extensively illustrated the Austrian historical, social, and cultural economy after World War II in 1945. The country was divided into quadrants that Americans, Russians, French, and British groups ruled. The country’s economic position was at risk as the city of Vienna was manned by deviant entrepreneurs, soldiers, and racketeers whose focus was mainly on the material. Austria’s ethical code of conduct was just a name as these groups prioritize materials over ethics. The film was created when the Austrian citizens were suffering from the harsh rules of the allied groups making significant decisions that impacted the nation’s performance both economically and politically. From the film’s plot, various moments portray historical contexts surrounding Austria.
The first moment is deviance that Lime uses to fake his death to avoid being charged with a crime that resulted in the death of many people. Lime is accused of selling penicillin to the black market, resulting in multiple deaths in society (Reed, 1949). From 1946 to 1947, the city suffered from grabs involving the military and the locals within Vienna. The four groups running the city are in a treaty separating the natives who take shelter in underground zones. These groups include poor people and people who engage in black market activity. The habitant plays a crucial role in regulating the economy that incorporates the people of Vienna and the refugees who have joined the city to seek shelter due to war outcomes.
The priority of the Soviet leader Stalin during this period was to exploit the Austrian economy economically. The army grabbed whatever they could get their hands on in many Eastern European countries, including Austria. The Soviet military focused on looting Austria by removing economic assets. The looting activity was done in two phases; the first phase involved plundering wealth out of Austria, which was done by the soldiers’ sweeping the city and villages (Steininger et al., 2008). The second stage involved using combat troops that performed wholesale removal of multiple industrial plants. These industries hugely support war productions such as the food industry and other essential utilities. In the city of Vienna, the soviet troops looted jewelry, radios, liquor stocks, and watches. The private soviet officers focused on improving their lifestyle conditions, and they loaded many things such as furniture, automobiles, and food. Most of the stores in Vienna were looted, and by April 1945, most of them were empty.
The people of Vienna resided in battered buildings and places that were not much destroyed by the bombings. The survival of these groups was hugely dependent on the minimum wage generated from the black market business activities. The restriction suppressed the local people; for example, ordinary citizens were not allowed into the city of Vienna during day time. This resulted in immense fear among the locals pushing most of them to forge identities and fake papers to access the city areas (Steininger, 2008). Another group was impoverished and could not afford to make a forgery. At dusk, they entered the city to avoid being caught and punished by the city administration. The sewer system that the Vienna residents used as protection during the bombing period was used by the scammers and criminal figures during the night as hiding zones.
Secondly, the film shows the distinction between the inhabitants and the locals in the region. The region was a site where multiple activities that underrate morality in society. Lime was the criminal mastermind on the penicillin business who plotted the activity and benefitted significantly (Reed, 1949). Lime used the opportunity to provide foreign doctors with basic needs such as food, shelter, and sometimes currency, and in return, the doctors supplied him with penicillin. The movie significantly shows the outcomes of the Second World War and the political situation that the European nation held, leading to the creation of the microcosm. It portrays the changes that people of Vienna opted to when the environment changes favoring certain groups while undermining the weak groups.
The harboring of the soviet unions in Austria led to immorality and gender-based violence. The end of the war in 1945 seemed to be peaceful as few women were safe. However, the Soviet soldiers became fierce, and raping was indiscriminate. The first few days of the Soviet occupation in Austria were traumatic as children and women were raped. One of the priests in lower Austria, Hugo Hantsh, explained that women were never safe even in their beds. The Soviet occupation was brutal as they focused on quenching their desire even if it meant causing harm to other minority groups in the Austrian society (Parker & Poole, 2017). The violation of women’s rights was very extreme as some were held at gunpoint, others were raped while their husbands were watching. During this time, venereal disease spread as more than a third of women were infected. Rape in Austria was taboo; however, this could not be stopped as the government of Austria was not that powerful to fight back.
In 1947, the city was divided into quadrants; the French and Americans had single zones while the British and the Russians had two zones each. The Austrian parliament was located at the city center, shared among the four ruling groups. The members used a Jeep to share the movements within the city center as every member from the allied group was required to board the jeep (Bader, 1996). The ruling of Vienna and Austria was disorganized, leading to the onset of various problems in the country. The country failed to run its businesses as it lost contact with its food sources and raw materials. In many parts, including Vienna, the situation was adverse as citizens suffered from starvation conditions.
The condition within the city of Vienna was very unwelcoming as it affected the locals together with the foreigners. The city was deprived of crucial resources, which steered the confrontation between the foreigners and the locals. The city’s population significantly increased as many war victims sought refuge from Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia. This worsens the city’s situation as it was previously experiencing a food shortage. The adverse conditions led to the onset of activities such as penicillin racket. During the Vienna invasion, penicillin was a scorching commodity in the market (Bischof, 1999). This was aided by the shortage of doctors within Vienna and Austria. The hospitals opted in hiring external doctors who were not paid or sometimes paid a low wage. The low pay of foreign doctors was the leading cause of increased penicillin business in the black market. The idea of grabbing whatever you can is visible among the citizens as they engage in business activities. The law enforcers and the doctors joined hands and participated in the black market business. The surgeons used to still penicillin and use police and other underground citizens to sell the product.
The Russians greatly enhanced the operation of the black market within Vienna and Austria. The Russians play a significant role in fueling the black market. Most of the black market products were cigarettes imported from Western Europe and smuggled into Austria by gangs that were protected the Russian military troops (Bader, 1996). The soviet was involved in immoral cases such as using local gangs to kidnap individuals wanted by the Russian administration. Other activities associated with the Russian military include blackmail and protection money. Despite the city experiencing shortages in food and other basic requirements, the black market was running significantly.
From 1947 to 1948, Austria experienced a significant decline in food supplies leading to an increment in cases of suicide and other infectious diseases such as tuberculosis. The pre-war level in Austria had reached approximately 61%, with the country having low productivity in specific sectors such as consumer goods production (Bischof, 1999). The most disturbing problem that the country was experiencing during that time was food shortages. The soviets mainly focused on their wellbeing without considering the locals. The country’s productivity was majorly focused on oil production, favoring the soviet army operations. The soviets ensured that the soldiers were in good condition for war even though the locals suffered heavily.
The country experienced a tremendous inflation rate that led to increased product prices. Many business people within the city of Vienna practiced hoarding to increase their profit margin as demand for essential products increased. The cost of living dramatically expanded from baseline of 100 to 248 in less than a year. Even though business conditions were unfavorable, the black market continued to grow (Bischof, 1999). The police were inexperienced in handling the black market; hence the business continued escalating. The government could not formulate a suitable policy that could have helped curb the already out-of-hand situation. The weak continued to suffer as the political foreigners, and other black-market tycoons garnered wealth.
Thirdly, the search of truth by martin to establish the cause of death of his friend depicts the customs and practices of the Vienna governmental regulations. Beginning 1945 to early 1946, the Soviet, British, and French soldiers occupied the city of Vienna. The allied forces incorporated 150,000 soviet soldiers, 15,000 French soldiers, 40,000 American soldiers, and 55,000 British soldiers (Bischof, 1999). The survival of these troops was majorly dependent on the Austrian government. In the beginning, the bill was sorted by the Austrian government. In 1946, the government expenditure was approximately 35%, making the groups share the expense equally between the western and Soviet allies (Bischof, 1999). The second agreement by the Soviet Union was very unappealing as it enabled the soviets to take control of most Austrian businesses. An Austrian economist sought to nationalize the economy and advised Stalin regarding the radical proposal.
However, between February 1946 and June the same year, the Soviets took over hundreds of businesses. The soviets combined over 400 Austrian businesses and made the assets into Administration for Soviet Property in Austria (USIA). These made the soviets have control of more than 5 percent of the country’s economic output (Steininger et al., 2008). Furthermore, the Soviets expanded their shares to other monopolistic industries such as glass, oil, steel, and transportation. The USIA was not heavily integrated within the Austrian economy, and most of its products and profits were taken to the east leaving certain taxes unpaid.
The government of Austria refused to validate the operation of the USIU. However, the organization retaliated and refused to pay tariffs and other taxes. The soviets used the competitive advantage that the USIU had to stay on top of the Austrian market with no intention of investing in Austria. The soviets enjoyed using the resources of the Austrian government without getting involved in any economic building activities such as profit reinvestments. However, the USIU operation did not last long as it lost its competitive advantage (Steininger et al., 2008). The government of Austria feared that the union was harboring paramilitary gangs and labeled the organization colonial exploitation. The failure of the USIA made the Soviet economy rejoin with the Austrian economy.
In conclusion, there are various moments within the film “The Third Man” that illustrate the historical events in Austria. The first moment is Lime’s deviance stage to fake his death, thereby avoiding being charged with the crime. This moment reflects Austria’s Russian activity leading to policies that forbid the locals from entering the city without proper documents. A group of Austrians and other foreigners use forgery to access the city. It also illustrates the soviet body USIA that refuses to pay tax and additional tariffs. Secondly, the moment of immorality is portrayed by the behavior of Lime engaging in the selling of penicillin. This is illustrated by the rape cases that dramatically increased in Austria in 1945, where women and their daughters were raped without mercy. Also, the operation of the black market in Austria was significantly steered by the soviets, who helped the locals smuggle cigars. The doctors also engaged in selling penicillin during at the time when the country was suffering from a shortage of physicians. The third moment of searching for truth by martin portrays the efforts made by the Austrian government in fighting USIA. The government refused validation of USIA, which made them rejoin the Austrian economy.
References
Bader, W. (1996). Austria between East and West, 1945-1955 (pp. 12-169). Stanford University Press.
Bischof, G. (1999). Austria in the First Cold War, 1945-55 (pp. 8-226). ST. Martin’s Press.
Parker, J., & Poole, R. (2017). Austria and America: 20th-century cross-cultural encounters (pp. 73-80). LIT Verlag.
Reed, C. (1949). The Third Man [Film]. Vienna.
Steininger, R. (2008). Austria, Germany, and the Cold War: From the Anschluss to the State Treaty, 1938-1955 (pp. 13-86). Berghahn Books.
Steininger, R., Bischof, G., & Gehler, M. (2008). Austria in the Twentieth Century (pp. 3-321). Transaction Publishers.