The Great War and Modern Memory

Rating:
Summary: A Literary War
Review: A book relevant to the current situation of the War on Terrorism.

Fussell's focus is the literary context of the British trench experience of WW1. Contending, as he well illustrates, that for the British WW1 was an extremely literary war. In the trenches young men were reading books, writing poetry, sending letters home, subscribing to magazines, and for those who were not slaughtered, beginning careers as writers... such as with Robert Graves.

Fussell starts out with Thomas Hardy and ends off with Thomas Pynchon, Norman Mailer, and even connects Alan Ginsberg's Howl to the Great War literary tradition. Along the way he explores a panoply of authors whereby the terribly horrid war was imagined within a context of the British literary tradition (Chaucer, Shakespeare, King Arthur etc.), and it becomes evident that the war may have been prolonged, and not sooner negotiated to a close, as a result of the elaboration of heroic story.

The summer of 1972 Fussell spent in the British War Museum in a secluded room going through boxes of troop correspondence. There is an interesting emphasis on the "language" of war, the words used to describe bodies blown about into indistinguishable lumps of flesh sort of thing.

War is not an imaginable event, and yet we as conscious humans need to give war a face that we can live with... and in some cases be willing to die for. I find the book relevent to now in respect of considering how the War on Terrorism is envisioned within the American literary tradition (Bush knows his Huck Finn). The metaphors, the words, the use of past examples to describe war derive from our literary and historical context.

Rating:
Summary: A superior work, possibly a great book
Review: A penetrating examination of how "war" literature, especially poetry, creates (intensifies, manipulates, distorts, etc.) perceptions of the the nonparticipant reader as to the reactions of some of literate minds forced to endure the stupid horror of the first war.

Rating:
Summary: Worth the Read
Review: Another excellent book on the top 100 list. I think that I have figured out that some of the merit to a book being included on the list is whether it provides a portal to other literature worth reading. This book certainly does that and I now have several more books on my to-be-read list. As others have said, this book details the effect the infantry of the Great War had on our literature, world viewpoint, and psyche. The two criticisms I have are that he over-uses the label "irony" and his classification of "homoerotic". I have come to the conclusion that any contrast is 'ironic' to Fussel; thus, black would be ironic to white. I do not believe that is the case, or if it is, then 'irony' is so broad a category, it is has become meaningless and we should use more particular terms to communicate. Also, while I have no doubt that 'homoeroticism' and 'homosexuality' exist, Fussel quotes so many passages that merely show sentimentality of a man to another man that, I think it unfair to say it is 'homoerotic'. Certainly, men can be friends and have developed a depth of feeling for each other through a common traumatic experience that it does not need to be classified as 'homoerotic'. Or, if it does, like 'irony' the term has become so broad to emcompass such a large spectrum of emotions and feelings that it too has become meaningless.

Rating:
Summary: HOW THE TWENTIETH CENTURY BEGAN
Review: Centuries don't begin on time; the Twentieth didn't begin on January 1, 1900 (or 1901). Literary critic Paul Fussell located our century's birth in the appalling trenches of World War I in his insightful and thoroughly documented book, The Great War and Modern Memory.

It is hard to overpraise this book. I read the paperback in the late 1980s and reread it again last week. It is first and foremost a World War I British intellectual (literary) history but much, much more. Fussell is at home with the British literary heritage, which he shares with the poets and writers of the early 20th century. He covers in detail the memoirs of Siegfried Sassoon, Edmund Blunden, Robert Graves (of I, Claudius fame) and the poetry of Wilfred Owen, along with many others.

We return to 1914, when there was no radio, no TV, no movies to speak of, and when the populace had implicit faith in their press, their King and "progress." The central irony of this book was that the population rushed to support the war in order to support these 19th century ideals, ideals which would be shattered in the war that gave birth to the twentieth century. Fussell documents how World War I gave us the standardized form, the wristwatch, daylight savings time, civilian censorship and bureaucratic euphemism--and for the first time, despair that technology was driving civilization into perpetual war.

So The Great War and Modern Memory is not just a literary anthology; it has elements of political and social history and even (in the chapter titled "Soldier Boys" and for lack of a better term) what would come to be called Gay Studies. It is no accident that Fussell was a soldier himself (in World War II) and his sympathies lie with the common "grunt"; he does not mince words.

This is a wonderful book and it's hard to come away without learning something. The book introduced me to writers I wasn't familiar with; it also broadened my knowledge of the Great War and fleshed out my rather la-di-da, "Upstairs Downstairs" view of Edwardian England. Most important, it got under my skin--I've thought about the book on and off for the past 14 years. Few books do that to me--I would rank this up there with Ann Douglas' The Feminization of American Culture as a milestone of intellectual history and, like her work, you don't have to accept the central thesis to have a great time reading it.

Rating:
Summary: Brilliant on many levels
Review: Fussell's book is one of those rare works of brilliance that examines what other genuises have done in an entirely new way. Relying on the evocative poetry and literature that arose after World War I, he demonstrates how it was not just influenced, but created, by the irony brought home by the war experience. To me, Fussell's book is the literary equivalent of Coppolla's movie Apocalypse Now, which used Conrad's Heart of Darkness to explore the Vietnam experience. Those who enjoy seeing things in a new light will cherish this book. Those who don't like to have their minds expanded will hate it. Few will feel indifferent.

Rating:
Summary: The GW&MM has opened whole new worlds for me.
Review: Given that fifteen of the sixteen previous customer reviews have contained cogent and quite articulate praise for Professor Fussell's book, my praises may seem redundant. However, this is such a brilliant and important book that I am compelled to write about it.
I have been obsessed with The GW&MM since I first read it in 1978, so obsessed that I have read it many times. Each time I read it new ideas and new authors spring out of the text and send me to the library or bookstore. Fussell's prose is captivating, and his scholarship is breathtaking in both breadth and depth. My first reading of The GS&MM was in Belgium during a Sabbatical year in Brussels. Our son was writing a senior ISP on the effect of the German invasion on Belgium, and we went to Ypres as part of the research. We were both overwhelmed by the 105 Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries there, and reading The GW&MM during that period helped to put these beautiful and touching burial grounds into the context of the mud and stink that was the Salient during (and for several years after) 1914-1918.
Prof. Fussell introduced me to Graves (my favorite) and Sassoon and Blunden and David Jones and Wifred Owen and opened the door to these wonderful novelists and poets for a biochemist without much appreciation of British literature.
The GW&MM presents an amazing constellation of knowledge and understanding and compassion for the victims of WW I, and my recommendation of this masterpiece is totally enthusiastic and without reservation.

Rating:
Summary: The GW&MM has opened whole new worlds for me.
Review: Given that fifteen of the sixteen previous customer reviews have contained cogent and quite articulate praise for Professor Fussell's book, my praises may seem redundant. However, this is such a brilliant and important book that I am compelled to write about it.
I have been obsessed with The GW&MM since I first read it in 1978, so obsessed that I have read it many times. Each time I read it new ideas and new authors spring out of the text and send me to the library or bookstore. Fussell's prose is captivating, and his scholarship is breathtaking in both breadth and depth. My first reading of The GS&MM was in Belgium during a Sabbatical year in Brussels. Our son was writing a senior ISP on the effect of the German invasion on Belgium, and we went to Ypres as part of the research. We were both overwhelmed by the 105 Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries there, and reading The GW&MM during that period helped to put these beautiful and touching burial grounds into the context of the mud and stink that was the Salient during (and for several years after) 1914-1918.
Prof. Fussell introduced me to Graves (my favorite) and Sassoon and Blunden and David Jones and Wifred Owen and opened the door to these wonderful novelists and poets for a biochemist without much appreciation of British literature.
The GW&MM presents an amazing constellation of knowledge and understanding and compassion for the victims of WW I, and my recommendation of this masterpiece is totally enthusiastic and without reservation.

Rating:
Summary: An enlightening book
Review: I am the kind of history and war buff that loves to read straightforward war books: books about battles, generals, soldiers, tactics, blunders, strategies, weapons and so on. Having read a review of Fussell's book a few years ago and thinking it was another "straightforward" book about World War One, I added it to my Christmas list. I received it as a gift this year (along with about 6 other books, all novels) and I decided to browse it for fifteen minutes before diving into one of the novels. What struck me at first was that it was NOT a straightforward telling of WWI, and that if I had looked at the book in a bookstore I probably would have thought it "boring" and set it back on the shelf. You see, in this book there are no detailed accounts of the Somme or in-depth analysis of Ypres.

However, having book in hand, I was immediately drawn into Fussell's examination and analysis of literature, essays, poetry, letters home, theater and culture on the front and in England during WWI in order to paint a picture of the British soldiers' experience during WWI. It is a fascinating book on many levels and examines war, in this instance The Great War, from a completely different aspect than I have ever seen before. Fussell illuminates much more clearly what happened to the boys/men in the trenches than anything I have ever read before. For instance, has any other book captured so vividly the oppressiveness of being in a trench for days when all you see is a sliver of sky and the horrific irony of morning and evening stand-to's? I don't think I have read a book that made me sympathize and empathize with the WWI soldier more than this book. It is a deeply moving and touching book and really drives home the futility of war.

I know that this book will not appeal to everyone (as I said earlier, it probably wouldn't have appealed to me had I picked it up in a bookstore), but I believe that most people will find it fascinating if they just put their minds to it. Fussell's book will reward those seeking a deeper understanding of the WWI soldiers' experience.

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating Analysis of the Works of Great War Soldiers
Review: I have had an interest in the First World War since I saw an 8 hour documentary on public television a few years ago. Trying to decide which book to purchase on the subject, this work caught my eye. A book on the way in which the Great War helped shape the modern world was just what I was looking for. Plus, it was written by Paul Fussell, who I recalled from the famous essay "Thank God for the Atom Bomb." Fussell is one of the most respected historians with a reputation for telling it like it is. Well, this book was a little different than I thought it would be, but did not disappoint.

From this book, I've gained a better understanding about life in the trenches and the general backgrounds of the Great War soldiers (at least a better understanding than would be expected from a spoiled Gen. Xer who would never experience such a watershed event). Fussell explains the trench system and the daily routines very well by including many details a lot of books do not offer. I did not realize the close proximity between the trenches and the civilian populations or how speedy and efficient the mail service was at the front. He gives a nice overview of the time period (what was considered important, etc.) to help the reader understand what ideas shaped the lives of soldiers before the war and how their backgrounds helped them cope and make some sort of sense out of the wretched conditions they faced (i.e. a common interest in pastoral images). "Pilgrim's Progress," for example, was a novel most British soldiers read. In fact, language, in general, was one of the only forms of entertainment at the time, so most soldiers were connected by literature no matter their social class (hard to imagine these days). Fussell also gives a brief history of sky awareness to explain how life in the trenches caused many soldiers to view the wonders above them in a new light.

As a professor of English literature, it is understandable that Fussell concentrated on the works of English soldiers: Siegfried Sassoon, David Jones, Robert Graves, Wilfred Owen, Edmund Blunden, Robert Nichols to name a few (if a reader is interested in other combatants, they may wish to put off buying this book). Fussell is such an expert of this era (not only of literature) that he is able to warn the reader of fictional stories in the "memoirs" and the "autobiographies" he analyzes. Fussell regards Grave's "Goodbye To All That" as fiction (and Graves even admitted as much). Of course, not being historical fact does not diminish the importance of such works. Fussell examines poems and memoirs in a way that helps even readers like me (who have not read any of the works) to recognize the ways they shed light on the Great War. You do not need vast knowledge of the First World War to enjoy this book.

Fussell does touch on "modern memory" (at least from a 1970's perspective). WWII suspicion of the press (those stories of concentration camps can't be THAT bad), Hitler's wartime strategies, words like "lousy", etc. all hearken back to the Great War. But the connection to modern times is not as much of a focus as the title indicates. Understanding the Great War through British literature is what I came away with as the theme of this book.

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating Analysis of the Works of Great War Soldiers
Review: I have had an interest in the First World War since I saw an 8 hour documentary on public television a few years ago. Trying to decide which book to purchase on the subject, this work caught my eye. A book on the way in which the Great War helped shape the modern world was just what I was looking for. Plus, it was written by Paul Fussell, who I recalled from the famous essay "Thank God for the Atom Bomb." Fussell is one of the most respected historians with a reputation for telling it like it is. Well, this book was a little different than I thought it would be, but did not disappoint.

From this book, I've gained a better understanding about life in the trenches and the general backgrounds of the Great War soldiers (at least a better understanding than would be expected from a spoiled Gen. Xer who would never experience such a watershed event). Fussell explains the trench system and the daily routines very well by including many details a lot of books do not offer. I did not realize the close proximity between the trenches and the civilian populations or how speedy and efficient the mail service was at the front. He gives a nice overview of the time period (what was considered important, etc.) to help the reader understand what ideas shaped the lives of soldiers before the war and how their backgrounds helped them cope and make some sort of sense out of the wretched conditions they faced (i.e. a common interest in pastoral images). "Pilgrim's Progress," for example, was a novel most British soldiers read. In fact, language, in general, was one of the only forms of entertainment at the time, so most soldiers were connected by literature no matter their social class (hard to imagine these days). Fussell also gives a brief history of sky awareness to explain how life in the trenches caused many soldiers to view the wonders above them in a new light.

As a professor of English literature, it is understandable that Fussell concentrated on the works of English soldiers: Siegfried Sassoon, David Jones, Robert Graves, Wilfred Owen, Edmund Blunden, Robert Nichols to name a few (if a reader is interested in other combatants, they may wish to put off buying this book). Fussell is such an expert of this era (not only of literature) that he is able to warn the reader of fictional stories in the "memoirs" and the "autobiographies" he analyzes. Fussell regards Grave's "Goodbye To All That" as fiction (and Graves even admitted as much). Of course, not being historical fact does not diminish the importance of such works. Fussell examines poems and memoirs in a way that helps even readers like me (who have not read any of the works) to recognize the ways they shed light on the Great War. You do not need vast knowledge of the First World War to enjoy this book.

Fussell does touch on "modern memory" (at least from a 1970's perspective). WWII suspicion of the press (those stories of concentration camps can't be THAT bad), Hitler's wartime strategies, words like "lousy", etc. all hearken back to the Great War. But the connection to modern times is not as much of a focus as the title indicates. Understanding the Great War through British literature is what I came away with as the theme of this book.