“What impressions of the war in France were given by ‘official’ newspaper reports and government propaganda?”
“Did this ‘official picture’ reflect the actual experiences and feelings of the soldiers involved”
“Was the British public deliberately misinformed about the war by the government and the press?”
I will study a variety of sources and evaluate the impact that they bestow on me. I will also think about the effect that the sources would have had on people in Britain during World War One. I have also got to decide whether all views given through British propaganda measures were the same or if they differ to the view put out by the British government. To conclude I have to answer the above questions and decide on a suitable answer. I will only be able to do so by studying a wide range of sources. I will not analyse the sources in terms of utility and reliability as this is an interpretation exercise and they would not contribute to my answer.
Sources one and two are examples of British propaganda designed to arouse hatred and fear towards Germans and Germany. Posters like these would have been common during world war one, as the British government needed public opinions to be in favour of the war effort. In source one, the title reads “Destroy this mad brute.” Underneath this is the image of a fierce looking gorilla, which represents Germany. It is holding two things; one a limp, helpless maiden swooning in the clutches of this “mad brute.” She represents Belgium, the reason Britain entered the war. The second, a club engraved with the word “KULTUR”, meaning that the gorilla represents the culture of the German people. One of the posters’ many purposes, is to create the impression that Germany is evil, that it would take a helpless figure such as Belgium with brute force. Many people would have agreed strongly with this point, creating sympathy and empathy for the war effort. This poster would have appealed to many young men and is an effective way in obtaining soldiers, as they would have enlisted with the ambition of being the typical British hero, saving the damsel in distress. This conforms with the point of view that impressions of the war were influenced by government propaganda. The second posters’ caption reads “Once a German always a German!” It shows pictures of the infamous events surrounding German soldiers, such as the killing of the babies. This makes the point that the German that has committed such atrocities and the German who after the war will want free trade with Britain are “One and the same person!” The crimes depicted in this poster make you question the type of person that would commit such a terrible crime and makes you reassess your thoughts of the German nation, now thinking them sly, cruel and inhumane. The caption commands us to “Remember!” reinforcing the impact this propaganda has on our views, it is as though it is challenging the viewer to think about the appalling aspects of the Germans shown and to forget all else. A person during World War One, with somewhat limited information available to them would remember the inhumane acts and the emotions that had stirred inside them when they had first heard about them and then think about how the ‘one and the same’ would benefit from post war sales. Spite would have been the result, making this an effective piece of propaganda, provoking ‘official’ thoughts and making the war in France seem just and worthwhile. I think that propaganda methods did influence the views of people, not just by depicting the Germans as monsters but by being the only information about the war that was readily available. Little suggests the horror of war in these sources and they create the impression that all Germans are evil or “mad brutes”. It spreads the biased opinion that German culture involves violence and inhumane acts and that every German employs these acts. They give the impression that we, the gentlemanly British should be the ones to stop them. It would have roused public support by stirring hatred towards the enemy as is shown in the sources. I also think that the sources create an impression of German defeat being easy to accomplish (They mention no need, or desperation or use any type of plea. One just says “Destroy” the other “Remember.”) and show a slightly fictional point of view…the rescue of a damsel in distress, which would appeal to the ego of the young British male. I did notice that the sources said nothing about the war, they only spurned the enemy.
Source 3, a poem published in a British newspaper is a typical example of wartime propaganda, which would have been used to endorse the stereotypical “evil” image of Germans. Entitled “The Great German Baby Killers”, and written by J. Gilham it uses a patronising tone to describe “the wonderful Germans”, mocking the seriousness of a war that will kill twenty million. It does have a function however, it would encourage the British and keep up moral. The light tone of the poem keeps the minds of those at home away from the death and carnage of the trenches and the words set their sights towards victory, “England will meet you…” This again gives the impression of the brutality of the German nation, creating support for the war effort. It also gives the impression that Britain will win. This is the typical ‘official’ picture that met the eyes and ears of wartime Brits and is a very controlled and biased way of viewing the war.
There are many more examples of the types of propaganda shown in sources one, tow and three. They all typically show the same thing and create hatred for the stereotypical German, an image that is somehow imposed on every German alive. There are many accounts of German force and brutality, like the passage of the dismembered girl. “Ah, Monsieur” she replied “Les Allemands, they did chop it off.” I have a lot of doubt as to whether this is a factual account, however the reliability of the source is not in question and the savageness of the deed is shown. Source 4B also says “I realised then, if never before, what we were fighting for.” This would have been effective used as propaganda as it shows a soldiers' ‘belief’ and faith in the validity of the war effort. It would have rallied the people in Britain to move in the pro-war direction.
Another aspect of British propaganda is an attempt to put the British public’s mind at rest. Source 7 shows a picture of a strong, brave looking man stood in front of the British flag. The caption says “Don’t be alarmed, the 5th Welsh are on guard.” I think that this would have comforted the public and presented an image of a strong and capable British army, protecting the motherland. It would have also encouraged men to join this strong armed force.
Source 8A shows a photograph of the army training session on a beach. This public display would have been purely propaganda, aimed to raise spirits of the general public. It would have presented the ‘official’ picture of army in a public place and would have shown the side of the army that the government would want to be shown, the effort that goes into the training of the troops before they enter the war. Also in source 9A an image is shown of troops going into action. They are throwing helmets into the air in excitement, they seem to have no worries or apprehensions about going into battle. This type of propaganda was again common and would have created the impression of the brave soldiers fighting a battle that was totally in their favour, that they had no chance of loosing. In source 9B, the general leading them is even smoking a pipe! Of course both images are paintings, as they are not factual accounts of the war but images created by allies of the government to keep up moral.
The impression of the war in France that is given off in ‘official’ government propaganda and newspaper reports I feel concentrate on one thing – the upkeep of moral. In one newspaper report (Daily Mirror) the title reads “ADVANCE OF ALLIES IN THE WEST STILL CONTINUES” Underneath are a list of all the armies accolades and then in small sub headings are: “Allies’ heavy losses” and in slightly larger print “ALLIES LOSSES SLIGHT” This makes me think that the government are trying to conceal the reality of the war – that men’s lives were acctually being lost.
The enlistment of men was a high priority with government propaganda measures set out. This even spread to the music halls. It bacame a matter of national pride to enlist, men who searved in the army were promised that the women would “cheer you, thank you, kiss you,” if you joined the forces. British companies took advantage of advertisment oppertunities with this in mind. Source 13 shows and advertisment of Nestles Milk. It says “Send some tins of Nestle’s milk to your sailor friend” and adds a note from a soldiers letter saying “Milk is our greatest Luxury.” This does not tell of the suffering of war, and presents the impression that a soldiers main worry was on the issue of milk. Other companies took advantage of advertisment opportunities also, none create an impression that a soldiers life was filled with any other worry than that of a lack of milk in their tea.
In answer to the first question I can see that the ‘offiacial’ view given off by propaganda methods and in Newspaper articles is quite a secret one. Moral is high on the agenda and a lot of effort goes into the upkeep of public opinion. The other major factor presented by British publications is the hatred of the German. Many methods are employed to keep up this pretence. Many accounts are told of German brutality. Once a German, always a German would definatly have played on the minds of the British public.
