Writing Assignment
–
Art, Expression, &
the Great War
Directions:
Essays should be doubled
–
spaced, size 12 font, with one inch margins all around.
Essays must be a minimum of 1
page
and should be a maximum of 3
pages.
All references from the textbook
or documents must be cited parenthetically (
Tindall
, pg) or (Author)
.
All references to the art
must
be cited parenthetically by an abbreviated
title
and artist (
Wounded, Dix).
All references to the
memorials must be cited parenthetically by the title (Sk
eleton Memorial).
No bibliography is needed for your essays.
The required heading is only your name and a page number in the top right hand corner of each page.
Writing Assignment:
In the aftermath of the Great War the world changed in extremely
dramatic ways.
For example
,
t
he 19
th
A
mendment gave women the right to vote which changed
the
role of women; the “Great M
igration
”
and
Harlem
Renaissance
changed the lives of African
–
Americans
;
the advent of radio and the growth of Hollywood
shrank the c
ountry; and the birth of the age of the automobile made people more mobile and free. Y
our
weekly
textb
ook reading will detail
these changes
and others during the 1920s and examine their effect on
society, while this week’s writing assignment will look at t
he
effect
of
WWI
on individuals and
s
ociety.
While the world changed around them, many individuals and cultures were trying to make sense of the pain,
suffering, death and destruction wrought by the years of war. Many
soldiers
expressed themselves during
and
after the war through poetry, literature, art, and
sculpture
, and many societies expressed
their
grief in small
and large memorials and
cemeteries
. The following
sources
are a collection of several
poems
, excerpts from
literature, and images of works
of art and memorials. Read the words and view the images, then
write
a
response paper based on the question
s
below!
Question
:
Read the following poems, look at the works of art, and examine the memorials created by American, British,
Canadian
, French,
and German soldiers that fought
on the Western Front th
roughout World War I. Discuss
how these expressions represent to the world and future generations the nature and impact of the Great War
on individuals and society.
End your essay by answering the ques
tion:
If you had to sum up the
impact of the
Great War in one word, what would that word be?
Some of the questions to consider
when writing your response are:
What do the poems tell us about the
experiences of these soldiers?
How do the works of art expre
ss what the soldiers experienced during the war
and how they are dealing with, or not dealing with, that experience?
What differences can you see between
the
European
and American perspectives on the war?
How do these men view the war and their role there
in?
What strikes you when reading these poems?
You do not need to answer any or all of these specifically, but they might help give you ideas of what to
write.
Your response should re
ference the documents and artwork, but not simply describe them to the
re
ader
.
Your answer should reflect that you
examined the documents, artwork, and monuments
.
Literature
–
Poems
and Novels
In Flanders Field
Lt. Col. John McCrea (1915), Canadian Army
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.
Suicide in the Trenches
2
nd
Lt. Siegfried Sassoon
(1917), British Army
I knew a simple soldier boy
Who grinned at life in empty joy,
Slept soundly through the lonesome dark,
And whistled early with the lark.
In winter trenches, cowed and glum,
With cramps and lice and lack of rum,
He put a bullet throu
gh his brain.
No one spoke of him again.
You smug
–
faced crowds with kindling eye
Who cheer when soldier lads march by,
Sneak home and pray you’ll never know
The hell where youth and laughter go.
Dulce Et Decorum Est
