Diary of Jack Laurie
Today, whose date is August, 1914 will mark the most significant date in Australia and her prestigious history. I was settling down with my wife at breakfast time for a bowl of Kellogg’s corn flakes, banana and orange juice when the news came. I work in a mine, you see, so my knowledge of the War which ignited in Europe is not at all thorough.
‘Jack, dear, JACK...JACK! Have you seen the papers this morning?!’ my wife, Marjorie said.
‘I haven’t darling’ I replied, with a mouthful of milky golden flakes, ‘What’s the matter?’
‘It says here that Australia needs to fill a quota of 20 000 men to fight for Britain in the Great War!’
My response was pure excitement. I could not wait to enlist in this adventure of a lifetime, where I would fight for Australia and go down in history as one of the many who have shown their dedication to Australia and our Mother Country, Britain.
I turned to Marjorie. I could see the excitement reflected in her eyes, but I knew that smile was laced with bitter-sweetness.
‘I won’t go then,’ I said, ‘nothing’s more important to me than you.’
‘Let us take a walk and clear our minds,’ she muttered.
As we opened the door, we saw that our town had undergone a transformation in the short minutes since we knew of the war. People were dancing to music in the streets, singing madly and posters covered every wall. We looked to our left and saw two posters:
‘Go darling, go!’ she exclaimed.
We used this post show the effect Propaganda could have on people.This excitement for the war which erupted is known as ‘Indecent Enthusiasm.’ People saw War as an opportunity and never considered the negative impacts it would have. However, once they were hit with the harsh reality of war, their views changed dramatically.
NB: The Jack and Marjorie Laurie in this post are entirely fictitious. Any person who shares similarities with the aforesaid is purely coincidental. However, the events which take place are based on fact.
This is a gripping post. I especailly like the idea of 'indecent enthusiasm'. What was the primary function of the posters in your post? What aspect of life did they attempt to 'tap' into? i.e. were they trying to pressure people into enlisting? Or was it more about a sense of duty?
ReplyDeleteTHe posters had a number of primary functions. They tried to convince people to enlist by making men feel the need to prove themselves worthy, guilt toward their friends and family both in the war and out of it and the duty to England the 'Mother Land.'THey used these things to pressure people into enlisting.
ReplyDeleteEl & V.