Comments for Great War Fiction

Comment on Carol Anne Duffy’s ‘Last Post’ by George Simmers

George Simmers — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:58:16 +0000

You’re right about Horace, of course, but Duffy’s first lines quote Owen, so it’s appropriate to link Dulce et decorum to him, too.

One thing I wonder. Owen wrote D et D in late 1917. I get the impression that by this time the ironic contrast between Horace’s idealistic slogan and muddy reality had become quite a common trope in war literature. So by linking the two, was Owen actually following the trend?
Still, he does it better than anyone else.

Comment on Carol Anne Duffy’s ‘Last Post’ by MARK WOOD

MARK WOOD — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:21:11 +0000

I think you may have been a little unfair in referring to (mis(use of Owen’s poetry. “Dulce et decorum est” actually goes back much further (to Horace??). Owen was simply using a phrase already well-used by the 19th Century. Duffy’s simply continuing the tradition!!

Comment on The Pretty Lady by George Simmers

George Simmers — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:56:30 +0000

And there’s also a Galsworthy story, Defeat (written 1916, published after the War) which takes a sympathetic, non-moralistic look at a prostitute (German pretending to be Russian) and her British officer customer.

Comment on The Pretty Lady by Roger

Roger — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:46:05 +0000

‘the extreme calm with which Christine, G.J. and the author accept her profession is unusual in English fiction, to say the least.’
A contemporary of Bennett, R. B. Cunninghame Graham takes a similar attitude in some of his short stories. In his case the woman is French, which- as with Bennett- may be meant to point out that they order these things better in France. In Ford’s Last Post Tietjen’s elder brother takes a French ballet-dancer as his mistress: the relationship begins by being entirely commercial, but that does not stop it becoming an emotional commitment by both people.

Comment on Posterity by Etl World News | The test of time?

Etl World News | The test of time? — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:00:26 +0000

[...] love Galsworthy and for that matter Wells. Here is the article. Here is further commentary. By the way, no one back then voted for Agatha Christie, who is now probably the most [...]

Comment on Posterity by George Simmers

George Simmers — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:08:00 +0000

Read ‘The Old Wives’ Tale’, an amazing novel. You will not be disappointed.

Comment on Posterity by lola

lola — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:49:04 +0000

“Bennett still seems to me the most under-appreciated of British novelists.” Oooh – which one to start with?

Comment on Posterity by Splendeur et décadence : où est donc passé John Galsworthy? « Brumes

Splendeur et décadence : où est donc passé John Galsworthy? « Brumes — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 18:36:19 +0000

[...] Galsworthy hot, James Joyce not The Guardian, 26 octobre 2009 et Posterity, de George Simmers, 12 octobre [...]

Comment on Posterity by Roger

Roger — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 20:23:36 +0000

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/oct/26/how-our-literary-tastes-change for Guardian’s own comments

Comment on Posterity by The Sunday Papers | Rock, Paper, Shotgun

The Sunday Papers | Rock, Paper, Shotgun — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 23:47:45 +0000

[...] I found this fascinating. Poll results from Guardian readers of what authors they thought posterity would remember. From the 1920s. They were, shall they say, well off. [...]