Total War

"[B]oth sides had seen, in a sad scrawl of broken earth and murdered men, the answer to the questionÐ'....Neither race had won, nor could win, the War. The War had won, and would go on winning."1 These are the words of Edmund Blunden, a British soldier who survived the Battle of the Somme, who came to the realization that nobody could claim victory in the twentieth-century mass warfare, because both winners and losers paid a high price. The new type of warfare launched in the twentieth-century had a great impact on the modern world that went beyond the immediate cost of casualties.2 The psychological, social, economic and technological effect these wars had on those who survived earned this type of conflict a new name: total war, which encompassed all aspects of life. Before 1914, Western society believed in progress, peace, prosperity, reason, and the rights of the individual. During that time, people believed in the Enlightenment, and industrial developments and scientific breakthroughs were a daily reality apparent in the rising standard of living. But World War I crushed all hopes and dreams. It plunged society in an age of anxiety and uncertainty in almost every area of human life. The social impact of total war was also profound. The role of women changed dramatically as the war greatly expanded their activities and changed attitudes towards them. This change was brought about by the total national readjustment and the mobilization of the home front. In order to wage unrestrained warfare, belligerents had to intervene in the economies, diverting production from peacetime goods to the manufacture of munitions and military equipment. Technological advances also took place, which increased the number of "mechanical contrivances"3 such as heavy artilleries, tanks, submarines, and airplanes, which made war an "untrammeled, absolute manifestation of violence"4 as Carl von Causewitz so eloquently put it.

Total war marked the beginning of a revolution in thought and ideas, where turmoil, uncertainty, and pessimism replaced the cherished values and beliefs of peace, prosperity, and progress. Men and women in the West felt "increasingly adrift in a strange, uncertain and uncontrollable world."5 In his essay "The Crisis of the Spirit" written in 1919, Paul ValÐ"©ry, one of France's most outstanding poets, wrote that Europe "doubted itself profoundly."6 This is certainly true since the terrible trauma of total war left deep scars in the European "spirit." 7 The people were so devastated by the war that they lost faith and hope in a brighter future. They did not have the strength or will to believe in themselves anymore. They also doubted that life would ever return to normal, as it had been before the war. The Western society entered an age of darkness and pessimism. Many intellectuals even began to doubt the future of civilization. Increasing numbers of thinkers and writers expressed their somber views about the new reality of life. Paul ValÐ"©ry argued that "the best of life is behind us, that fullness is behind us, but disarray and doubt are in us and with us."8 People didn't know what to expect anymore. Great numbers of men and women were anxious about what the future held for them. Many feared that another war would break out. ValÐ"©ry states that "The storm has just ended, and yet we are as disquieted, as anxious, as if the storm were still to break upon usÐ'.... We do not know what will come forth: still we can reasonably fear it."9 The storm in this case was the war which left people in such a shock that they looked upon the future with great apprehension and uneasiness. The soldiers that served in the war were hit especially hard by the horror of war. Erich Maria Remarque, a German soldier vividly portrays the carnage of World War II: "We have become wild beastsÐ'.... [and] crouching like cats we run on, overwhelmed by this wave that bears us along, that fills us with ferocity, turning us into thugs, into murderers, into God only knows what devils."10 The soldiers that managed to survive this horror felt lost and weary when they had to return home: "Our knowledge of life is limited to death. What will happened afterwards? Ð'... Now if we go back we will be weary, broken, burnt out, rootless, and without hope. We will not be able to find our way."11 Total war left the Western society with a feeling of demoralization and apathy.

The Great War also brought social changes to the West. The role of women dramatically changed as the war greatly expanded their activities. The growing needs of the military created an enormous demand for workers. To compensate for the millions of men who were drafted into the armed forces, great numbers of women entered the labour force. They left their domestic service to work in industry, transportation, and offices. The poem "Rosie the Riveter" by Redd Evans and John Jacob Loeb paints a vivid picture of the role that women played in "making history, [w]orking for victory."12 It also describes the long hours of work that women had to put out in order to fulfill their production quotas. The American propaganda poster of Rosie the Riveter portrays new qualities attributed to women. They are depicted as strong, proud, reliable, and hard workers who can indeed "do it" all.13 Dressed in her work uniform, Rosie the Riveter characterizes all the women who assisted in the war effort through their contribution on the home front. In addition, women played an important role at the war front. They drove ambulances, served as nurses and doctors, and distributed food to the soldiers, "undeterred by discomfort and hardship."14 Furthermore, a number of women "responded with enthusiasm to the call for drafts"15 and by their help, they contributed directly to the victory of the allied forces in the First World War. As a result of their participation in the war effort and the increasing respect they earned, women were granted the right to vote immediately after the war by Britain, Germany and Austria.16 In general, the war increased women's participation in the society, and helped shed light into their true character.

In order for countries to be victorious on the war front, the mobilization of the home front had to be implemented, in order to fully match the growing demands of the armed conflict. This was not an easy task, as it involved the total subordination of the individual to the state, and the strict control of all aspects of life. Thus total war led to the establishment of history's first totalitarian society, with Germany leading the way in this enterprise.17 Many steps had to be taken in order to accomplish this goal. The free-market capitalism was abandoned

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