Reaction Essay

World War One was the first war of its kind. Like in most wars, no one knew what was to come or what was going to happen, but this war took a toll on everyone, especially the soldiers. After reading the Prologue I was astonished by the effects war had on the soldiers such as 'shell shock', the trench conditions and the use of gases. The reading only gave me a slight view on what fighting on the Western Front was like and I was surprised that many men that were wounded or went insane went back to fight, knowing how horrible the conditions were. The reading really showed the pain and suffering the soldiers had to go through and how hard it was to fight on the front with little food, water and constant bombardment.

Trench warfare was a new way of fighting in WWI. The soldiers pretty much lived in these trenches during the four years of war. The trenches were built a specific way, they weren't just pits in the ground. In front of the trench was a wire fence. The front and back walls known as the Parapet and Parados were both built up with sandbags, with a fire step for soldiers to shoot along the Parapet. (Diagram found on page 13 of Prologue). Another thing new in the War was the use of gas shells, mainly chlorine gas, phosgene gas and the most lethal, mustard gas. I was surprised to find that the gases didn't kill the soldiers almost right away. Chlorine gas slowly killed a person through asphyxiation and a solider would fight for air for days. A soldier once said, " There, sitting on the bed, fighting for breath, his lips plum-colored, his hue leaden, was a magnificent young Canadian past all hope in the asphyxia of chlorine..." (page 66 of Prologue). Mustard gas showed no effects for up to twelve hours. Slowly it would begin to kill the body. The skin would blister and nausea started. The pain soldiers had to go through was beyond endurable. Constant bombardment and firing of guns began to take a toll on the sanity of many soldiers. Men started to break down and hysteria began. Men could not concentrate, they were tired, had headaches and always worried. There were many attempts to understand the effects and disorders of shell shock. The soldiers who suffered from shell shock went to special hospitals where they would stay for a couple weeks and get well fed, well rested and rehabilitated. Surprisingly, shell shock was a small percentage compared to other cases of illness, gas attacks, etc.

If I was in the same position as these soldiers in the war, I think I would have gone through the same kind of fear and shock as some of these soldiers did. I can really understand why some of the men went mad because of all the fighting, shooting and harsh conditions. I did not know that soldiers had these psychological problems during the war. Something I did agree with was a sentence on page 116 of the Prologue about authorities feeling like they owed the wounded more then just another chance to get killed. Many soldiers that were wounded had time to recover and got sent right back in to fight. I agree that they should have gotten time off of duty but I think they should have extended this gesture to the soldiers that suffered shell shock. After reading the Prologue I was impressed that many soldiers did make it out of the war alive even after enduring illness, trench warfare, gas attacks and shell shock.