Representations of Warfare in Literature

Representations Of Warfare In Literature.
Research Questions
-Through whose eyes do we see warfare and its effects in each text?
-To what extent does the context (setting, race, gender, political stand point, etc) effect societies views on warfare?
-What similarities and differences are there between how warfare affects society in the texts? What does it tell us about the ways in which people have viewed warfare over time?

The Western Front Diaries
Jonathan King
16/09/2010
A collection of diaries about the experiences of the ANZAC soldiers in the western front during World War 1.
Q1:
In the western front diaries we see warfare and its effects through the eyes of frontline soldiers, men and women who put their lives on the line where the fighting was thickest. And the war was at its peak.
Q2:
I believe the context had little to do with how the soldiers and society as a whole viewed this certain theatre of war. All the diaries compiled into the book were written by middleclass Australians and New Zealanders, most diaries ended before any insightful comments were made however. Some soldiers wrote of how war had just changed where they sleep while others had much more dramatic transitions. An example of a smooth and indifferent transition comes from the diary of one Devonne Chuck, quote, “...most Aussie men were so used to roughing it out in the bush that the trenches were like a second home, give an Aussie a sheet of corrugated iron, some planks and he’s set for the next month. War didn’t really change nothing...” a very small percentage of men, nicknamed budgers by their comrades, questioned the war and it’s purpose in their diaries, asking such rhetorical questions as “Why are we fighting?”, “Is it really worth it?” and “Are those German chaps really as bad they say?”
Q3:
The Western Front Diaries is very similar in setting to Alamein aside from the time difference it is the same enemy and very much the same political circumstances. Both books...