The Beginning of World War I

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WWI Synthesis Essay Bruce Lee once said, “Mistakes are always forgivable, if one has the courage to admit them” (“Bruce Lee”). During World War I, the mistake of Serbia killing the archduke was neither admitted nor forgiven. A series of events brought together the European continent into a bloody and unprecedented war. WWI depicts that a small error or miscommunication leads to a bigger issue and suffering of people as portrayed through the aftereffects of the death of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. At the beginning of WWI, the civilians and soldier’s initial expectations were expressed through various forms of propaganda, which instilled a sense of nationalism into the civilians and became a driving force to begin the war at all fronts (Maxwell “MAIN causes of WWI). One of many French propaganda, “Credit Lyonnais. Subscribe to the 4th National Loan,” depicted the battle between a French soldier and a hawk, in which the hawk represented Germany. The French soldier stabbed the hawk to symbolize the expectation of the war – win and be back home quickly. In addition, the French soldier pulled away the French flag from Germany, as if France regained their former cities: Alsace and Lorraine. The poster causes the spread of nationalism through the demonization of Germany and the expected rewards from the war. The possible rewards from the war encouraged and convinced civilians to buy war bonds. Each and every country viewed their side as good, and believed they were fighting a defensive war against other evil countries. The sense of nationalism helped arouse the general population, instigated them to take action, and become a part of this war (Maxwell “Propaganda”). At the time the war was believed to be the last war in a long time, so many ... ... middle of paper ... ... Aug. 2009. Web. 16 Feb. 2014. . Maxwell, Hilary. “Entering WWI.” Monta Vista High School, Cupertino. 23 Jan. 2014. Lecture. Maxwell, Hilary. “MAIN Causes of WWI.” Monta Vista High School, Cupertino. 16 Jan. 2014. Lecture. Maxwell, Hilary. “Propaganda.” Monta Vista High School, Cupertino. 27 Jan. 2014. Lecture. Maxwell, Hilary. “The Big Four.” Monta Vista High School, Cupertino. 4 Feb. 2014. Lecture. Maxwell, Hilary. “Treaty of Versailles.” Monta Vista High School, Cupertino. 6 Feb. 2014. Lecture. Maxwell, Hilary. “Warfare Plans of Countries.” Monta Vista High School, Cupertino. 26 Jan. 2014. Lecture. Nevinson, Christopher. The Machine Gun. 1915. Oil on canvas. Remarque, Erich Maria. All Quiet on the Western Front. Boston: Little, Brown, and Co., 1929. Print. Sassoon, Siegfried. “Suicide in the Trenches.” 1917.

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