Pat Hamer

Period 6

5/11/05

Journal #1

What are the underlying causes of World War 1?

The underlying causes of WWI were the nationalism, social Darwinism, imperial rivalries, militarism, and secret alliances. Nationalism caused the people of the countries to grow proud of their nations and their ethnicities. The nationalism also sparked social Darwinism. This social Darwinism led some countries to believe that in order to grow strong they must try to dominate other countries in wars. Also imperial rivalries fueled the bitterness and animosity among the major world powers. Add to these heightened tensions a strong sense of militarism which is the belief of huge militaries and wars to solve their problems causes some problems. Lastly the secret alliances amongst the countries also caused many countries to join the war like when Britain joined after Germany invaded Belgium who had an alliance with Britain.

What was the specific cause of World War 1?

The specific cause of World War 1 was the assassination of the Archduke Ferdinand of Austria by a Serbian terrorist group who called themselves “The Black Hand.” Though this event alone would not have caused the war this was the straw that broke the camels back.

How did the soldiers react as they went off to war? Why?

The poems of Sassoon, Owen, Rosenberg, and others, we see the voice of the individual: at times cynical, at times sympathetic. Yet running through all the poems (Brooke being the exception) is a feeling of futility and outrage at the suffering caused by the War or the War itself. The question that needs to be asked is how representative are the emotions expressed by Owen and Sassoon of those felt by the majority of the soldiers fighting on the Western Front?