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My Boy Jack (Context (Both My Boy Jack and Regeneration were written post…
My Boy Jack
Context
soldiers, whilst living in the trenches had to suffer with diseases and infections such as gangrene, trench foot as well as rats and lice that carried many diseases
Suffragists would lay white feathers at the bottom of men's feet if they hadn't enlisted as a sign of cowardice. This shows the general attitudes towards the war during this time.
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Propagandists would paint a picture of war that in most cases was not true. Patriots like Jessie Pope and Rudyard Kipling said the war was a "clean, honourable task" and played on men's need to affirm their masculinity to make them enlist in the war
many soldiers suffered with mental illness after Word War One such as PTSD also known as shell-shock.
Non-Combatants
The people at home were left in constant anxiety as they did not know if their family members would return from war
When Carrie sees the telegram she follows the stage direction "scream" the word "no" as she believes her worst fear has come true
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AO4
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comradeship is a common theme within world war one literature as the soldiers found that they had nobody else to rely on, especially within the battle field. They were people that had gone or were going through similar if not the exact same experiences as them.
Jason Crowthorne wrote an essay on 'Sexuality, Sexual Relations, and Homosexuality' in which he explores how reliant soldiers were on eachother during the war.
Disability and Suffering
Physical
Bowe's anxiety about going "over the top" makes him physically "shake like a leaf" and "shake uncontrollably". He attempts to hide this anxiety by pretending he's cold, "Jesus I'm cold, are you cold?", "Jesus I'm freezin"
If 'My Boy Jack' had been shown during World War One, the audience members probably would have ridiculed Bowe for the fear that he possessed before going over-the-top
Suffragists would lay white feathers at men's feet if they hadn't enlisted in the war as a sign of cowardice.
McHugh got very aggressive at Bowe threatening to kill him, "I'll kill yous first" and swearing at him, "Fuck you!". He finally uses violence with Bowe and "hit[s] Bowe hard in the face"
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Some say that McHugh is angry at Bowe because he is expressing the pain and anxiety that is he is trying to suppress
a modern day reader is likely to sympathise with Bowe as after World War One due to the catastrophic effect the war had on mental health, the field was researched heavily by professionals and new methods of helping people were found. There is far less stigma around mental health now and individuals are far more likely to ask for help when needed.
Mental
Bowe's reaction to the Battle of Loos which we see when he arrives at the Kipling's home to explain what happened to John.
Propaganda, like Jessie Pope's poems 'The Call', and 'Who's for the Call?' censored out mental illness like PTSD or shell shock because it would have dissuaded men from enlisting
Bowe is presented as having PTSD, common with soldiers after they had fought for a period of time in the war
Haig uses an anaphora of "I can't breathe" and the stage direction "Bowe is seeing the chlorine gas" to suggest Bowe's suffering and mental delcine
A pacifist may view this scene with particular criticism and empathise with Bowe due to their objection of war and the terrible consequences it brings
Haig uses long sentences and lots of commas in Bowe's flashbacks which makes the speech seem rushed and fast paced, suggesting how painful it must be for him.
Haig uses ellipses to show the pain that Bowe experiences when recalling these memories, "no man's land...", "machine guns..."
Haig uses a metaphor of machine gun bullets being like "Bees! Bees!", "buzzin'" around him. This shows how poignant the memory is for Bowe
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The Glory of War
Against
Haig places Scenes 6, 7, and 8 in Act 1 (the scenes in the trenches) directly after Rudyard says that the war is a "clean, honourable task". A structural device that is intended to shock the readers and make them see what Haig perceived as the truth in war.
Haig builds tension throughout Act 1 to show the soldiers' fear as they prepare for battle. In the early scenes they use jovial, colloquial language and then as time continues they become more desperate, begging God to let them live.
Haig uses stage directions like "shaking like a leaf" and "(sincerely panicked)" to juxtapose with the earlier scenes and show the soldier's true feelings
Jovial and Colloquial language: "I've got the cramps on account o' needin' a shit" and "I've just had a terrible image of you in bed with your wife Bowe"
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For
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Rudyard thinks that allowing sons and husbands to go to war is a "common sacrifice" that everyone in the country should be prepared to make
Comradeship
comradeship is a common theme within world war one literature as the soldiers found that they had nobody else to rely on, especially within the battle field. They were people that had gone or were going through similar if not the exact same experiences as them
Jason Crowthorne wrote an essay on 'Sexuality, Sexual Relations, and Homosexuality' in which he explores how reliant soldiers were on each other during the war.
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Masculinity
Jack is pressurised by his imperialistic patriot father who forces him to wear a pince-nez and recite facts about the potential war
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