The ''Merkel-Raute''
(German for "Merkel
rhombus
In plane Euclidean geometry, a rhombus (plural rhombi or rhombuses) is a quadrilateral whose four sides all have the same length. Another name is equilateral quadrilateral, since equilateral means that all of its sides are equal in length. The ...
"), termed the Merkel diamond
or Triangle of Power by English-speaking media, is a hand
gesture
A gesture is a form of non-verbal communication or non-vocal communication in which visible bodily actions communicate particular messages, either in place of, or in conjunction with, speech. Gestures include movement of the hands, face, or ot ...
made by resting one's hands in front of the stomach so that the fingertips meet, with the thumbs and index fingers forming a rough quadrangular shape. This signature gesture of
Angela Merkel
Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Oppo ...
,
German Chancellor
The chancellor of Germany, officially the federal chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany,; often shortened to ''Bundeskanzler''/''Bundeskanzlerin'', / is the head of the federal government of Germany and the commander in chief of the Ger ...
, has been described as "probably one of the most recognisable hand gestures in the world".
[
Asked about how the ''Merkel-Raute'' was introduced as her trademark, Merkel stated that "there was always the question, what to do with your arms, and that's how it came about."][ She chose the gesture without having been assisted by a counsellor because "it contains a certain symmetry".][
]
Use by supporters and opponents
The stereotypical gesture was originally used in order to ridicule Angela Merkel and her government.[ Most notably, it is found with comedians impersonating her, combined with the colorful jackets she is usually seen wearing. In Jan Philipp Gloger's staging of '']The Flying Dutchman
The ''Flying Dutchman'' ( nl, De Vliegende Hollander) is a legendary ghost ship, allegedly never able to make port, but doomed to sail the seven seas forever. The myth is likely to have originated from the 17th-century Golden Age of the Dut ...
'', which premiered during the 2013 Bayreuth Festival
The Bayreuth Festival (german: link=no, Bayreuther Festspiele) is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of operas by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived ...
, the ''Merkel-Raute'' is used as a criticism of capitalism
Criticism of capitalism ranges from expressing disagreement with the principles of capitalism in its entirety to expressing disagreement with particular outcomes of capitalism.
Criticism of capitalism comes from various political and philoso ...
: During the performance, the gesture is shown as the distinctive mark of a nameless, synchronized elite of bankers and managers.
When used by her own party (the conservative Christian Democratic Union), the gesture is intended as a political symbol
Political symbolism is symbolism that is used to represent a political standpoint or party.
Political symbols simplify and “summarize” the political structures and practices for which they stand; can connect institutions and beliefs with emot ...
for Merkel's (presumed) unagitated leadership. On 2 September 2013, near the climax of the campaign for the 2013 federal election, the CDU unveiled a giant banner greeting travellers at Berlin Hauptbahnhof
Berlin Hauptbahnhof () (English: Berlin Central Station) is the main railway station in Berlin, Germany. It came into full operation two days after a ceremonial opening on 26 May 2006. It is located on the site of the historic Lehrter Bahnhof, ...
, which was displayed on two sides of a hotel building under construction, taking up a total space of nearly . The photographic mosaic
In the field of photographic imaging, a photographic mosaic, also known under the term Photomosaic, is a picture (usually a photograph) that has been divided into (usually equal sized) tiled sections, each of which is replaced with another phot ...
was made up of 2,150 images of the hands of CDU supporters and shows nothing but Merkel's hands forming the ''Raute'', next to the slogan "(Put) Germany's future in good hands" (german: Deutschlands Zukunft in guten Händen). According to Hermann Gröhe
Gottfried Hermann Gröhe (born 25 February 1961) is a German lawyer and politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who served as Minister of Health in the third cabinet of Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2013 until 2018.
Early life and ...
, the manager of the CDU election campaign, the billboard would perfectly "embody our election message".[
Politicians of the opposition criticised the giant campaigning billboard as an instance of a "monstrous ]cult of personality
A cult of personality, or a cult of the leader, Mudde, Cas and Kaltwasser, Cristóbal Rovira (2017) ''Populism: A Very Short Introduction''. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 63. is the result of an effort which is made to create an id ...
",[ calling it "]Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
n-style".[ Berlin-based newspaper '']Der Tagesspiegel
''Der Tagesspiegel'' (meaning ''The Daily Mirror'') is a German daily newspaper. It has regional correspondent offices in Washington D.C. and Potsdam. It is the only major newspaper in the capital to have increased its circulation, now 148,000, s ...
'' used the childless Merkel's nickname ''Mutti'' ("mommy")[ in conjunction with ]Kurt Tucholsky
Kurt Tucholsky (; 9 January 1890 – 21 December 1935) was a German journalist, satirist, and writer. He also wrote under the pseudonyms Kaspar Hauser (after the historical figure), Peter Panter, Theobald Tiger and Ignaz Wrobel.
Tucholsky was on ...
's poem ''Mutters Hände'' ("Mother's Hands", which describes the hands of an old, dying woman) to imply that it was unfavorable for politicians to be characterized by just one hand gesture.
In addition to the billboard, the ''Merkel-Raute'' was also employed in the CDU's other campaigning efforts. The Young Union
The Junge Union Deutschlands (''Young Union of Germany'') or JU is the joint
youth organisation of the two conservative Germany, German Political party, political parties, Christian Democratic Union of Germany, CDU and Christian Social Union in Ba ...
(''Junge Union'' or JU in German), the youth wing of the CDU, organised flashmobs in which members gathered in a circle while imitating the gesture in several public places in Germany. It also produced posters featuring a stylised version of the ''Merkel-Raute'' above the words "'" ("Keep calm and vote for the Chancellor" or "Stay cool and choose the Chancellor") a play on the British wartime slogan Keep Calm and Carry On
''Keep Calm and Carry On'' was a motivational poster produced by the Government of the United Kingdom in 1939 in preparation for World War II. The poster was intended to raise the morale of the British public, threatened with widely predi ...
; these posters were also made into various articles of clothing, such as T-shirt
A T-shirt (also spelled tee shirt), or tee, is a style of fabric shirt named after the T shape of its body and sleeves. Traditionally, it has short sleeves and a round neckline, known as a ''crew neck'', which lacks a collar. T-shirts are general ...
s and hoodie
A hoodie (in some cases spelled hoody and alternatively known as a hooded sweatshirt) is a sweatshirt with a hood. Hoodies with zippers usually include two pockets on the lower front, one on either side of the zipper, while "pullover" hoodies ...
s. This stylised version had also been used by teAM Deutschland, the CDU's campaign team, to represent Merkel on its website as early as March 2013. Also, the Association of Christian Democratic Students
The Association of Christian Democratic Students (german: Ring Christlich-Demokratischer Studenten) is a German student organisation founded in 1951 and based in Berlin. It contains more than 100 groups at universities with 8,000 members in tot ...
(''Ring Christlich-Demokratischer Studenten'' or RCDS in German), a student organisation associated with the CDU, created the website "'" ("Students for Merkel") featuring photographs of university students imitating the ''Merkel-Raute'' with the slogan "'" ("I'm voting for Angie! And you?"), to which readers were encouraged to upload their own photographs.
The CDU has brought back the Merkel-Raute for its 2017 election campaign as well. The Raute features prominently in its website for supporters, "''Ich unterstütze Merkel''" ("I support Merkel"). The website uses the slogan "I love Raute", along with a logo consisting of "I ❤" followed by a stylised Raute similar to that used by teAM Deutschland in 2013. It encourages supporters to upload photographs of themselves decorated with the aforementioned logo. The CDU has also made items such as pens, cups, stickers, and bags with this logo available for sale on its main website.
Internet meme
Since its installation, the giant CDU campaigning poster has enjoyed prominence on the Internet, especially with the users of social networking service
A social networking service or SNS (sometimes called a social networking site) is an online platform which people use to build social networks or social relationships with other people who share similar personal or career content, interests, act ...
s.[ The releasing of digitally altered images has turned into an ]Internet meme
An Internet meme, commonly known simply as a meme ( ), is an idea, behavior, style, or image that is spread via the Internet, often through social media platforms. What is considered a meme may vary across different communities on the Internet ...
, most notably featuring Merkel's hands superimposed on images of Mr. Burns
Charles Montgomery Plantagenet Schicklgruber "Monty" Burns, usually referred to as Mr. Burns, Monty, or C. Montgomery Burns, is a recurring character and the main antagonist of the animated television series ''The Simpsons'', voiced initially by ...
(whose trademark is a similar gesture), Grumpy Cat
Tardar Sauce (April 4, 2012 – May 14, 2019), nicknamed Grumpy Cat, was an American Internet celebrity cat. She was known for her permanently "grumpy" facial appearance, which was caused by an underbite and feline dwarfism. She came to promin ...
, Spock
Spock is a Character (arts), fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. He first appeared in the Star Trek: The Original Series, original ''Star Trek'' series serving aboard the starship USS Enterprise (NCC-1701), USS ''Enterprise ...
and others.
The emoticon <> referencing the Merkel-Raute has also been adopted by the CDU as a symbol of Merkel in its Internet communications, even after the end of the 2013 election campaign. For example, it organised a competition on its Facebook page in which people were encouraged to comment with "<>" in order to win a bag printed with the aforementioned campaign poster. It also used the emoticon at the end of its 2013 year-end video montage, as well as in its Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
congratulations to Merkel on her sixtieth birthday on 17 July 2014.
See also
* Pantone Merkel
References
External links
*
{{Gestures
Angela Merkel
Cultural depictions of Angela Merkel
Hand gestures
Internet memes
Political symbols
2013 elections in Germany