War Is HELL !!War Is HELL !!

Hell by Georges Leroux

Goal of Today

• The goal of today will be to look at the realities of war. We will look at poetry, songs, pictures, and paintings.

• Themes

• Destruction- landscape, emotional, and physical

• Heinrich Beutow- German Schoolboy“After the initial enthusiasm and patriotism came a

wave of quietness, because then the first death lists were published in the papers. And my mother was suddenly surrounded by women of the regiment, the wives of the other officers of course, and most of them- because my father’s regiment was one of the first to march over the boarder into Belgium- were widows. And even as a child, I must say, it gave me a great shock to see that most of the officers were dead and killed during the first weeks. A lot of younger soldiers were dead and the whole feeling of enthusiasm faded away very quickly, in my opinion. The world became grey after that day.”

Art of WWI

“Gassed and Wounded”Eric Kennington, 1918

“Gassed and Wounded”Eric Kennington, 1918

“Paths of Glory”C. R. W. Nevinson, 1917

“Paths of Glory”C. R. W. Nevinson, 1917

“A Street in Arras”John Singer Sargent, 1918

“A Street in Arras”John Singer Sargent, 1918

• According to this painting, how has the battle affected the soldiers?

• How has the battle affected the landscape?

GAS

The three main types used were - chlorine, phosgene and mustard gas. Chlorine - a greenish, heavier than air gas which in its pure form is an oxidizing agent. This means that it will react in the presence of water to cause a chemical burning effect on organic matter. Mucus tissues of the human body are susceptible to such chemical reaction because of 1) their organic nature and , 2) they are always covered with a film of water. Symptoms of chlorine gas poisoning include vomiting, difficulty in breathing, a burning sensation in the lungs, eyes, nasal and mouth passages, watery eyes. In severe cases, cell damage in the lungs leads to fluid buildup in the lungs, loss of consciousness through suffocation, and death. Phosgene - a colorless, odorless, heavier than air gas formed by heating carbon tetrachloride. It is highly poisonous in that it will preferentially replace oxygen in the cells and quickly causes an oxygen debt within the body, unconsciousness and death. Mustard gas - a caustic gas with a distinctive mustard smell, it causes blistering and huge sores on any exposed tissue, internal or external. Probably the most used gas, with phosgene, in the war. A nasty piece of business.

• Private W.A Quinton- talking about poison gas

“The men came tumbling from the front line. I’ve never seen men so terror- stricken, they were tearing at their throats and their eyes were glaring out. Blood was streaming from those who were wounded and they were tumbling over one another. Those who fell couldn’t get up because of the panic of the men following them, and eventually they wee piled up two or three high in his trench”.

Poison Gas Attacks

Effects of Mustard Gas

• Mustard gas– Carried by the wind

– Burned out soldier’s lungs

– Deadly in the trenches where it would sit at the bottom

“Death is everywhere”

“Dulce et Decorum Est”Wilfred Owen

• English TranslationSweet and Decorous

Decorous: characterized by dignity and good taste in manners and conduct;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qts3K3KznN4

What Was it Like to Bury People?

• Stuart Cloete, A Victorian Son (1972) As you lifted a body by its arms and legs, they detached themselves from the torso, and this was not the worst thing. Each body was covered inches deep with a black fur of flies, which flew up into your face, into your mouth, eyes and nostrils as you approached. The bodies crawled with maggots. The bodies had the consistency of Camembert cheese.

Total Destruction

Verdun: Cloister of the Hotel de la Princerie

Village of Esnes

Poetry from the First World War was written by soldiers who served at the Western Front.

• They saw the horrors of War first hand.

• They wrote about what they really saw.

• Their poems were published just after the war, so they were not censored. They are first hand and often unbiased sources.

"If I live, I mean to spend the rest of my life working for perpetual peace. I have seen war and faced modern

artillery and know what an outrage it is against simple men."

Tom Kettle, Irish Poet, killed at the Somme 1916

Bombardment Four days the earth was rent and torn By bursting steel, The houses fell about us; Three nights we dared not sleep, Sweating, and listening for the imminent crash Which meant our death.The fourth night every man, Nerve-tortured, racked to exhaustion, Slept, muttering and twitching, While the shells crashed overhead.The fifth day there came a hush; We left our holes And looked above the wreckage of the earth To where the white clouds moved in silent lines Across the untroubled blue.Richard Adlington

• In 1916, Kipling's Sea Warfare was published, which contained an emotional poem about his son Jack.

• "Have you news of my boy Jack?"Not this tide."When d'you think that he'll come back?"Not with this wind blowing, and this tide."Has any one else had word of him?"Not this tide.For what is sunk will hardly swim,Not with this wind blowing and this tide."Oh, dear, what comfort can I find?"None this tide,Nor any tide,Except he didn't shame his kindNot even with that wind blowing and that tide.Then hold your head up all the more,This tide,And every tide,Because he was the son you bore,And gave to that wind blowing and that tide!

Letters Home from the Garden of Stone by Everlast

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10ej46Mhshg

Sacrifices in WarSacrifices in War

Street Dogs What About the War After the War

• "Must you carry the bloody horror of combat in your heart forever?”- Homer Odyssey

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LljyU4BLuU

Military Casualties in World War I 1914-1918Belgium 45,550British Empire 942,135France 1,368,000Greece 23,098Italy 680,000Japan 1,344Montenegro 3,000Portugal 8,145Romania 300,000Russia 1,700,000Serbia 45,000United States 116,516Austria-Hungary 1,200,000Bulgaria 87,495Germany 1,935,000Ottoman Empire 725,000

And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda

• Casualties were high - approximately 252,000 or 52% for the British/French while the Ottoman Turks suffered about 300,000 casualties or a rate of 60%. The failed campaign gained little and badly tarnished both Churchill's and Kitchener's reputations.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPFjToKuZQM

Battle At Gallipoli, 1915

In Flanders Fields• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIBKtFfOR3I&feature=related

• In Flanders Fields the poppies blow Between the crosses row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below.

• We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields.Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders fields.

The Green Fields of France

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huRwBFmAx78

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SS1dO0JC2EE

• http://sites.google.com/a/wolfpackweb.net/wwipoetry/Home