Week 5: End of the course

Give peace a chance gaviota paseandera via Compfight

This is the last week of the fantastic WWI in 100 stories course. The topic this week is “The Old Lie”. We look at politics and war from the Australian and New Zealand perspectives.

Again we look at more stories that are silent and in black & white. Just this type of presentation makes you think more about what you are seeing without the distractions of colour or noise.

The first four videos were about a divided society bringing in topics like conscription, pacifism and pensions.

Arthur Rae – only one out of three sons arrived home

Margaret Thorp – the peace angel

Archie Baxter – New Zealand pacifist

Allan Whittaker – shot 13 years after the landing

My reflection:

I was so disappointed in society’s treatment of Archie and Margaret yet after the war Margaret continued with her work about being a peace angel – pacifism was definitely a part of her lifestyle. Having researched more on Archie he also was a pacifist for the rest of his life as were his brothers and sons. At the stage of WWI, religious beliefs were the only reason for exemption to military service.

When soldiers returned home, many were giving a soldier’s settlement grant but these were often out in the country and isolated from other people. The next four videos were about how the soldiers coped on the land.

Charlie Byrne – named his property Bugralong

James Dann – crippled but you can still farm

William Brown – enlisted at age 43

Fred Weir – nervy man but a trier

My reflection

These stories are all so similar. Lack of forethought by bureaucrats or maybe the mentality of that time – wounded men would feel better in the bush  and fresh air and hard work to occupy the mind. I would have liked to see some of the Soldier Settlement stories where the men actually succeeded. It is the wives i feel pity for, moved from their friends to an allotment not suitable for farming and a returned husband without the skills to get it started let alone keep it going.