A Culture of War

Justin H.

The State Historical Society has a large number of well-designed exhibits. With themes including Native American History, African-American culture in Iowa, the Caucuses and others, there are a variety of collections that can reach many different interests. I was particularly interested in the Iowa and World War I exhibit. I was never aware of Iowa’s level of involvement in World War I, so to see that my state had taken part in such an important conflict made me proud to be an Iowan.

I thought of expanding this entry to include a number of different images of wartime propaganda, but decided to focus on the one that caught my attention the most. This particular image isn’t striking at first glance, but upon further examination it proves to have a depth to it that warrants further analysis.

As stated before, this exhibit in particular caught my attention. It was a picture of four soldiers in full battle-dress, brandishing weapons and protecting civilians. The soldiers represented four nations that combated the Triple Alliance. From the left to the right, the soldiers represent Great Britain, the U.S., France, and Italy. They all hold their weapons at attention, as if ready to sally forth from a city and defend their homes. This picture depicts the wartime culture that permeated warring nations during World War I.

This particular picture makes a number of appeals to the viewer. First, and most obvious, is the appeal to the sense of patriotism. It leaves little to the imagination in terms of precisely how it views patriotism. These soldiers, their stance, their dress… all are elements indicative of the wartime mentality and the regard with which these soldiers were and are held. These soldiers proudly represent their nations’ collective military histories. This is not a judgement on the merit of the cause for which they were fighting. Whether having or lacking merit, this image appeals to the sense of patriotism inherent to citizens of a wartime nation (or, in this instance, several). While people may debate the merits of a particular war, they rarely debate the patriotism of the actions of the soldier. In this regard, this image reflects the wartime culture of patriotism above all.

The picture also makes an appeal to the protective aspect of humanity. Let the men go off and fight the battles, all in the name of protecting the women, children, and elderly. There are few looks of sadness among the citizens; only a grim sense of inevitability. They know that the majority of these soldiers will never see home again, as do the soldiers themselves. They personally have their faces set in a determined, confident look. They are prepared to throw themselves into the meat grinder that was trench warfare during World War I. This sense of duty and sacrifice also exemplifies the culture of a nation at wartime. These men seem prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice, and no one in the picture appears particularly broken up about it. They all accept the natural wartime order of things. This is yet again a reflection of the mindset and culture of a nation at war. This is a culture we've come to be all too familiar with, considering the constant state of war we seem to be in.