Items related to WAR IMAGINED
From Kirkus Reviews
Continuing the ground-breaking work of Paul Fussell in The Great War and Modern Memory, Hynes (Flights of Passage, 1988, etc.; Literature/Princeton) looks into the origin and impact of the myth that came into being to explain the significance of WW I. That myth depicted an idyllic England shattered irrevocably by the onslaught of a cruel and unnecessary way, by a generation of brave and idealistic young men lost in trench warfare prolonged by stupid generals and unimaginative politicians, and by the subsequent rejection by the embittered survivors of the values of their society. Hynes, like Fussell, uses major literary works of the period to illustrate the origin and growth of the myth, but also draws on newspapers and magazines, art, music, political debates, films, diaries, and letters. In certain respects, he casts doubt on the truth of the myth: The prewar period, for example, was characterized by labor unrest, Suffragette violence, the threat of civil war in Ireland, and a growing violence in the tone of political discourse. Hynes suggests, too, the difficulty of summarizing complex phenomena in so facile a way: There is, he notes, the picturesque popular image of way, which is clear and easy to respond to, and there is the truth, which is inconsistent, contradictory, and threatening. Thus, for example, the early poetry of Rupert Brooke, full of ideals and of the glory of sacrificing one's life for one's country, continued to be popular with some of the supposedly embittered young men late in the war. Ultimately, Hynes implies, these quibbles are almost irrelevant to shake a myth that has profoundly affected the way war is viewed in the 20th century. More suggestive than conclusive in its analysis of the validity of the myth, Hynes's account of the impact of a terrible war is still rich and satisfying. (Sixteen-page photo insert--not seen.) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
From Library Journal
This is an interesting, moving excursion in sociopolitical history. In some senses, Hynes (literature, Princeton), who has published widely on literary subjects (e.g., The Auden Generation: Literature and Politics in England in the 1930s , LJ 2/15/77), does for the Great War what Robert Graves and Alan Hodge do for the interwar period in The Long Week-End (1941). He does a better job of capturing the mood and changing nature of English culture, however, and that is saying a great deal. As this book makes manifest, World War I was a social watershed which saw England move from one way of life and values to another. Hynes makes especially good use of sources, drawing not only on standard texts and memoirs but delving into the revealing insights offered by films, music, art, etc. Essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the evolution of 20th-century British society.
- James A. Casada, Winthrop Coll., Rock Hill,
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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- PublisherRandom House UK
- Publication date1990
- ISBN 10 0370304519
- ISBN 13 9780370304519
- BindingHardcover
- Edition number1
- Number of pages514
- Rating
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A war imagined : the First World War and English culture / Samuel Hynes
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London : Bodley Head, 1990
ISBN 10: 0370304519
ISBN 13: 9780370304519
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First edition. Near fine cloth copy in a good if somewhat edge-nicked and dust-dulled dust wrapper, now mylar-sleeved. Remains particularly well-preserved overall; tight, bright, clean and strong. Physical description: xiv, 514 p., [16] p. of plates: ill.; 24 cm. Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index. Subjects: War and literature. Social conditions. Social aspects. Public opinion. Intellectual life. World War, 1914-1918 Influence and results. World war, 1914-1918 England Social aspects. War in literature. War in mass media. Genre: Illustrated. Summary: England after World War I was different: the arts, history, sex, society and class were different. The author records the process of that transformation of the imagination, from the war's beginning into post-war England with its disillusionment and social fragmentations. Between the opulent Edwardian years and the 1920s the First World War opens like a gap in time. England after the war was a different place; the arts were different; history was different; sex, society, class were all different. Samuel Hynes examines the process of that transformation. He explores a vast cultural mosaic comprising novels and poetry, music and theatre, journalism, paintings, films, parliamentary debates, public monuments, sartorial fashions, personal diaries and letters. Told in rich detail, this penetrating account shatters much of the received wisdom about the First World War. It shows how English culture adapted itself to the needs of killing, how our stereotypes of the war gradually took shape and how the nations thought and imagination were profoundly and irretrievably changed. 1 Kg. Seller Inventory # 338535
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A war imagined : the First World War and English culture / Samuel Hynes
Published by
London : Bodley Head, 1990
ISBN 10: 0370304519
ISBN 13: 9780370304519
Used
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First Edition
Seller: MW Books Ltd., Galway, Ireland
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First edition. Near fine cloth copy in a good if somewhat edge-nicked and dust-dulled dust wrapper, now mylar-sleeved. Remains particularly well-preserved overall; tight, bright, clean and strong. Physical description: xiv, 514 p., [16] p. of plates: ill.; 24 cm. Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index. Subjects: War and literature. Social conditions. Social aspects. Public opinion. Intellectual life. World War, 1914-1918 Influence and results. World war, 1914-1918 England Social aspects. War in literature. War in mass media. Genre: Illustrated. Summary: England after World War I was different: the arts, history, sex, society and class were different. The author records the process of that transformation of the imagination, from the war's beginning into post-war England with its disillusionment and social fragmentations. Between the opulent Edwardian years and the 1920s the First World War opens like a gap in time. England after the war was a different place; the arts were different; history was different; sex, society, class were all different. Samuel Hynes examines the process of that transformation. He explores a vast cultural mosaic comprising novels and poetry, music and theatre, journalism, paintings, films, parliamentary debates, public monuments, sartorial fashions, personal diaries and letters. Told in rich detail, this penetrating account shatters much of the received wisdom about the First World War. It shows how English culture adapted itself to the needs of killing, how our stereotypes of the war gradually took shape and how the nations thought and imagination were profoundly and irretrievably changed. 1 Kg. Seller Inventory # 338535
Quantity: 1 available
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A War Imagined: First World War and English Culture
Published by
The Bodley Head Ltd, 1990
ISBN 10: 0370304519
ISBN 13: 9780370304519
Used
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First Edition
Seller: CHARLES BOSSOM, Ely, CAMBS, United Kingdom
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Hard Cover. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. First Edition. Dust jacket complete, unclipped. Original cloth boards with bright gilt titling on spine. No ownership marks. Illustrated. xiv, 514 pages clean and tight. Between the opulent Edwardian years and the 1920s, between the England of "Pomp and Circumstance", the first Post-Impressionist show and "Man and Superman" and the England of "The Waste Land", "Facade" and "The Green Hat", World War I opens like a gap in history, separating one world of beliefs and values from another, and changing not only the map of Europe, but the ways in which men and women imagined reality itself. Because of the war, England after the war was a different place: the arts were different; history was different; sex, society, class were all different. Samuel Hynes records the process of that transformation of the English imagination, from the war's beginning, through crises and disasters, into post-war England with its disillusionment, social fragmentation and "Waste Land" spirit. He draws not only on the major literary texts of those years, but on newspaper and magazine writings, paintings, music, parliamentary debates, films, personal diaries and letters. From this store of contemporary records comes a portrayal of the great change that the war forced upon English imaginations, and of the cultural consequences. Size: 8vo. Seller Inventory # 145671
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