Preview

Was World War I a Total War?

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1101 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Was World War I a Total War?
Was World War One a total war? Why? Why not?

The First World War of 1914-1918, also known as the Great War, was the first total war in history. What began as a European struggle over the balance of power between the triple alliance of France, Britain and Russia on one side and the central powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary on the other, soon became a global conflict that involved the imperial powers of Europe, their colonies and lands such as the Ottoman Empire, Japan and the United States. Although the sheer number of countries involved in the conflict is enough to describe the First World War as a mass war, what makes it total is the fact that it was waged not only against the enemy's armies, but also against the civilian population. Military attacks, the use of propaganda and the fact that governments had to mobilise every available human and material resource for the conduct of war affected non-combatants and made World War One a war not fought between armies, but entire societies.

Civilians became targets of warfare because their efforts were crucial to the outcome of the war. While fifteen million soldiers died , untold millions suffered off the battlefield. One weapon that had a major effect on warfare in 1914-1918 was the submarine. Since all Britain's supplies were seaborne, enemies such as Germany resorted to starving the population by destroying British supply ships. The British also found it an effective tactic to blockade supplies to Germany, starving the German war economy and population. Air raids were also a reality for citizens and the general populace had to be ready for the enemy to strike at any time. Attacks were not always so random. An Armenian woman tells of her experiences of being taken from her city with her children, knowing that she was going to be killed - "I was in the last caravan to leave the city; we knew they were leading us to our deaths…there was a well wide open where the executioners immediately threw the women they



Bibliography: Bentley, Jerry H. & Ziegler, Herbert F., Traditions & Encounters, (New York, 2003). Demm, Eberhard, ‘Propaganda and Caricature in the First World War ', Journal of Contemporary History, Vol. 28, No. 1. (1993), pp. 163-192. Hobsbawm, Eric, ‘The Age of Total War ', Age of Extremes, Michael Joseph, 1994. 21-53. Marquis, Alice Goldfarb, ‘Words as Weapons: Propaganda in Britain and Germany during the First World War ', Journal of Contemporary History, Vol. 13, No. 3. (1978), pp. 467-498. PRIMARY SOURCES Lines of Fire. Women Writers of World War I, edited by Margaret Higonnet (New York, 1999): Gadarinee Dadourian, ‘A Mother 's Deportation ', pp.280-1. Mike Iavarone, "Trenches on the Web: Posters from the Great War," http://www.worldwar1.com/posters.htm#ger

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    Wollaeger, Mark A. “Modernism, Media, and Propaganda: British Narrative from 1900 to 1945” 20 March 1985…

    • 1269 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Research

    • 1751 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Cited: 1933, May. "Propaganda in Nazi Germany." History Learning Site. 2000. Web. 17 July 2011. .…

    • 1751 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Propaganda World War Ii

    • 730 Words
    • 3 Pages

    During The Second Warld War, propaganda was used more than any other time this world has seen. -> technological inventions: photography, radio and film -> modern way of manipulating people…

    • 730 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In 1914 the world began to experience a war like no other. The Great War was the first occurrence of total war in the modern period. Total war is when a country becomes entirely involved in the war effort, economically, socially and politically. The governments and civilians of the time were faced with the problems of industrial warfare. It was a period of radical and often painful adaption for military and civilians. Prior to The Great War, nations had rather small armies and involved men fighting on distant battlefields, resulting in the men returning home triumphant or defeated. This contrasted with the modern war that nations were facing in 1914. The new aim was to merge countries’ resources, supplying all effort to the mass of conscripted solders battling on the fronts. Immense impact on the home front during The Great War consisted of increased government regulation, changes in the economy, recruitment and conscription, propaganda, censorship, politics, the revolution of women and changed attitudes towards the war.…

    • 4274 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Bibliography: Duffy, Michael. "Propaganda Posters - United States of America". Online. http://firstworldwar.com/posters/usa.htm. Accessed January 7 2006.…

    • 819 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Bibliography: * German History in Documents and Images. Volume 6, Weimar Germany, 1918/19 – 1933. Adolf Hitler, "Appeal to the German People" (January 31, 1933).…

    • 1094 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    World War I, also known as The Great War, was an international conflict lasting from 1914 to 1918. The driving force that led nations to war was imperialism. It was fought between the Central Powers (consisting mainly of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Turkey) and the Allied Powers (consisting mainly of France, Great Britain, Italy, Russia, Serbia, the United States, and Japan).…

    • 450 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Propaganda During Ww2

    • 1533 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Bibliography: PROPAGANDA, Anthony Rhodes Published 1976, Chelsea House Publishers World War Two through Geraman Eyes, James Lucas Published 1987 by Great Britain “A Walk Through The 20th Century” Bill Moyers Published By PBS http://www.wiesenthal.com/bibliog/naziprop.htm http://www.ushmm.org/olympics/zcd057.htm…

    • 1533 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Wwi Propaganda

    • 658 Words
    • 3 Pages

    During World War I the government needed citizens to fight in the war, and to think what they wanted them to think. To accomplish this, the government used a technique known as propaganda to influence the minds of American citizens. These techniques were generally practiced through the media. This propaganda in the media would give one-sided information, to convince you to think a certain way. This was how the government persuaded the citizens to think one way, and to do what they wanted. I do not approve of these methods of persuasion. In this essay, I will explicate why I personally disagree with the methods of propaganda.…

    • 658 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    American Involvement in Ww1

    • 2923 Words
    • 12 Pages

    World War I (WWI), which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centered in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918. It involved all the world's great powers, which were assembled in two opposing alliances: the Allies (centered on the Triple Entente of the United Kingdom, France and Russia) and the Central Powers (originally centered on the Triple Alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy). These alliances both reorganized (Italy fought for the Allies), and expanded as more nations entered the war. Ultimately more than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilized in one of the largest wars in history. More than 9 million combatants were killed, largely because of great technological advances in firepower without corresponding advances in mobility. It was the sixth deadliest conflict in world history, subsequently paving the way for various political changes such as revolutions in the nations involved.…

    • 2923 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Propaganda, the art of persuasion and deception, has long been notorious for its ability to manipulate the opinion of the population - the holocaust was a gory testament to the atrocities that this machination is capable of. As early as in the 1930s, information had become a potent weapon in the context of total war, to which US Senator Hiram Warren Johnson had famously addressed: “In war, truth is the first casualty”. In spite of the smear and disdain that modern society has against propaganda, it is not to be neglected that during the great crucible of World War Two, the Canadian Government’s use of propaganda, backed by the War Measures Act, had made profound contributions to the Allied war effort. Even more so, it benefited the Canadian…

    • 1278 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Until 1914, all previous wars had been confined to small areas involving relatively small armies. World War I was the first ever 'total war' - where all aspects of a country's economic, social and political systems became devoted to the waging of the war effort.…

    • 1173 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Right from the start, both Germany and Britain quickly began spreading propaganda, attempting to promote their own country’s motives and justify their grounds for being in the war. Propaganda is defined as information, ideas, or rumors deliberately spread widely to help or harm a person, group, movement, institution, or nation. Both nations were affecting public opinion, but in the summer of 1915, German doctor Heinrich Albert mistakenly put a halt to Germany’s influence. Albert was a representative of the German…

    • 2359 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The First World War, also known as ‘The Great War’ due to its immense number of casualties and also large amount of countries involved, took place in 1914-1918. The spark that started the whole war occurred when Arch Duke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro Hungarian throne, was assassinated on the 28th of June, 1914. The First World War was pernicious in many ways; however there are three main reasons the Great War was so deadly: the new types of weapons, lack of successful leadership and the terrible living conditions.…

    • 886 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    should be able to give up something as small as 10% of their pay. It…

    • 1411 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays