World War I

The War produced many deep and moving works of literature which were particularly insightful because they were created by the people who knew the topic the best, the soldiers themselves. Like every era, we have studied before this there were people who were for and against the war. I did notice that this topic seemed to have less controversy then other eras though. In general, I got the understanding that the people who saw the most action were the ones who provided the strongest opposition. This was interesting to me because I think it is the opposite for the war which taking place today. My brother is an officer in the Army, and at any given time he and his military friends will launch into a three hour debate as too why the war is relevant including all the reasons we should remain fighting it. The literature that was in favor of the war also appeared to be more patriotic then war specific, whereas those opposing did not hold back the bloody truth.
Rupert Brooke was enlisted in the military but he died before ever getting to have any combat experience. His early death could be one reason he wrote such passionately patriotic poetry in support of the war. His most popular poem was also his last, “The Soldier” reveals Brookes passion his country and ironically deals with the remembrance of a fallen soldier. I say ironically because Brookes wrote this long before he knew that his life would soon becoming to and end, and long before he saw combat and knew what the war was truly like. The poem is sappier in nature and does not really have deeper understanding of the war (or perhaps I was just oblivious to its inner meaning?) showing only his love for his country and not any reason which we should fight in the war.

“That is foreve England. There shall be
In that rich earth a richer dust concealed;
A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware,
Gave, once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam,
A body of England’s breathing English air”
(3-7)

While these lines are beautiful and show why soldier is proud to fight for his country, it does not show any motives other then patriotism to fight the war. While I admire his patriotism and devotion to his country, I think it is foolish to fight a war only for those reasons. My brother is the most patriotic person I have ever met but that is not what drives his desire to fight in Iraq. For him it is the political motives, the knowledge that he is fighting the war for a greater good then just his love for America. I found that in the literature opposing the war more of a sense that the war has gone on too long and no longer serving its original purpose. These authors have seen the horrors of war and no longer think it necessary.
Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen had many of the same beliefs of the war. Both openly and publicly declared that enough was enough. Whatever reasons they had for entering the war were no longer relevant and it was time to put an end to it. Both Sassoon and Owen fought in war and went through rehabilitation after where they wrote many of their most noted works. While most people prefer Owens work because it was written with a “more formal and technical skill” I enjoyed the roughness of Sassoon’s work. In his piece entitled “Glory of Women” provides a more realistic idea of the war then we read in Brookes work. In fourteen lines Sassoon is able to capture the horrifying truth. He writes this to the women back home who praise and worship their soldiers and who may fail to realize what hell their men are really facing.

“O German mother dreaming by the fire,
While you are knitting socks to send your son
His face is trodden deeper in the mud.” (12-14)

I liked that Sassoon’s style was a little less “technical” then Owens because I think it helped prove his deep feelings on the issue. He did not concern himself with the form or technique but instead wrote what he felt and I feel this made his work a little more heartfelt and genuine.
As with any war, there was debate over the length, purpose, and effectiveness of the battle. I found it interesting though that unlike the issues over Victorian society and the French Revolution the differences in opinions on this topic were less attacking and more from the heart. I really enjoyed gaining the differing perspectives on this war and found reading the pieces very enlightening on the reality of the situation.