Topic > World War I Sources - 1627

As 21st century students of history, we have many comprehensive resources related to World War I that are readily available for study purposes. The origin of these primary, secondary, and fictional sources impacts credibility, perspective, and factual information, resulting in varying strengths and weaknesses of these sources. These sources include propaganda, photographs, newspapers, magazines, books, magazine articles, and letters. These collections allow people to better understand the facts, feelings, and context of the home front and battlefield of World War I. Autobiographies, diaries, letters, official documents, photographs and poems are examples of primary sources from the First World War. The two main sources analyzed in this essay are the poems “Anthem for Doomed Youth” by Wilfred Owen and “In Flanders Fields” by John McCrae. Primary sources are often personal, written from the limited perspective of a single individual. It is very difficult for the author to capture his or her own personal experience while incorporating the involvement and effects of other events happening at the same time. Each writing studied describes the author's perception of the war. Both poems are intended to show the grave reality of war, which was often not realized until the soldiers reached the front lines. The poems were both written in battle within two years of each other. However, the stark difference between the two poems is striking. “Anthem for Doomed Youth” makes a very different impression than “In Flanders Field” despite the fact that both authors were in the same war and similar circumstances. The first two lines of “In Flanders Fields” “…the poppies bloom, between the crosses, row upon row.” are an image of......middle of paper......ssor Heather MacDougall, "July – 11 November 1918: Pandemic Influenza on the Battlefield and Homefront," lecture given November 9, 2011, HIST 191, University of WaterlooMacDougall LectureProfessor Geoff Hayes, “4 August 1914: Slithering Over the Brink, The Origins of the Great War”, lecture given 31 October 2011, HIST 191, University of WaterlooHayes LectureItani, Deafening, #350Hayes LectureHayes LectureHayes LectureHayes Lecture“In Flanders” Fields”Hayes LectureHayes LectureLahey, A. Frances Itani author profile | Quill and Quire. Canadian magazine of news and book reviews | Quill and Quire. Accessed November 18, 2011 from http://www.quillandquire.com/authors/profile.cfm?article_id=2701Frances Itani, Deafening, (New York: Harper Perennial Modern Classics 2009), #33Itani, Deafening, #335