This photo is from the archives of the League of Nations and German Peace Society, and it shows a German soldier dead in the battlefields during World War I from 1914-1918. This photo was taken to show the horrors and destruction of the war. To ensure that destructive wars like this one never occurred again. Many leaders around the world created the league of nations, which is where this photo originated from. Nine million soldiers died in this war, as well as seven million civilians, and so the leaders in this organization worked together to establish peace and avoid any further conflicts. World War I was a devastating event and changed the course of history in America and around the world.
To provide some context of World War I, President Woodrow Wilson declared war against the German Empire and its allies on April 2nd, 1917, following attacks on U.S. ships by German submarines. The U.S. army was entering the war small, untested, and poorly armed. It was only the seventeenth largest army in the world at the time and so a lot of soldiers were not fully ready to go into battle. [1]As a result of this, many lives were lost, and many other soldiers were deeply impacted by the effects of the war, as many of them wrote about their traumatic experiences in memoirs such as the following. “Happy and young and gallant, they saw their first born go, but not the strong limbs broken, and the beautiful men brought low, the piteous writhing bodies, they screamed, “Don’t leave me Sir,” for they were only fathers, but I was your officer.” (Beiriger)[2] This is a memoir of Private David Sutherland, who was killed in action during the war. It details how the other soldiers in the trenches witnessed Private Sutherland dying and they were begging for him to try and stay alive as they looked to get him help. This is such a traumatic tragedy to experience, and many other soldiers witnessed people dying around them and it was hard for them to be a part of.
World War I was a tough and challenging time for many soldiers, and this photo puts a big emphasis on that. They had to learn to fight through the constant adversity that they encountered. Fighting through this adversity was a key factor for America to win the war. Many commanders of military groups preached this to their respective soldiers, and these soldiers knew exactly what it had to take to win it battle, which was showing courage and strength. “All this time they had been without shelter, exposed to a cold driving rain and without warm food—They were wet, chilled, and tired when called upon for even greater efforts, but they responded with energy and spirit of fresh troops.” [3] This is a quote from a letter from Col. Hugh D. Wise, who was a commander in the U.S. army. He talks about how his soldiers fought passionately despite the circumstances they faced. It is well documented in history that America was not the strongest or most prepared army during WWI, but for them to succeed, they had to overcome these challenges. WWI also led to the evolution of soldiers in the U.S. army. The tragedies of the war and harsh experiences motivated America to become better equipped as an army and become the best soldiers possible. In other words, the war was used as an inspiration for many. “Furthermore, it compelled citizens and communities to grapple with the new, disquieting, and undeniable realities, traumas, and mandated personal ‘sacrifices’ that 20th-century U.S. state-sponsored warfare entailed” (Seitz) [4] Dealing with trauma is hard, but if people could learn how to tackle it, that’s what makes them stronger and that’s how the U.S. army has grown throughout history.
The photographer of this photo makes many interesting creative artistic choices that relate to the message of this piece. In the photo, the photographer shows the entirety of the soldier’s body, and you can see he lost his legs in battle, and I thought this was a way to show how gruesome the war was. Another thing I found interesting was how they showed other soldiers standing around the body, and one of them was dragging it. This is a good way of showing the constant and disturbing experiences of soldiers during the war, and how basically they always saw the horrors of war which was traumatic. One last thing I found interesting was how the soldier didn’t have any protective armory on. I think this shows the vulnerability of soldiers during WW1, as they didn’t have the necessary resources or protection to help them survive the war, and as a result many lives were lost. Overall, I think this photo puts an emphasis on the dangers and consequences of war.
[1] Shi, David Emory. America: A Narrative History. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2022.
[2] Beiriger, Eugene Edward. World War I: A Historical Exploration of Literature. Greenwood, 2018. https://eds.s.ebscohost.com/eds/ebookviewer/ebook/ZTkwMHh3d19fMTkyNDg3NF9fQU41?sid=db7f3f88-3952-4b07-80be-ae34a47c1d68@redis&vid=11&format=EB&rid=2.
[3] Wise, Hugh D. The Little Lead Soldier. Yardley: Westholme Publishing, LLC, 2017. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/shuedu/reader.action?docID=6176566.
[4] Seitz, David W. World War I, Mass Death, and the Birth of the Modern US Soldier: A Rhetorical History. S.l.: LEXINGTON BOOKS, 2020. https://eds.s.ebscohost.com/eds/ebookviewer/ebook/ZTAwMHhuYV9fMTgzNDM1OF9fQU41?sid=db7f3f88-3952-4b07-80be-ae34a47c1d68@redis&vid=11&format=EB&rid=1.