ia_2009_d_jacob

=D. Analysis (500-650 words) Tips]=

Develop C

Quotes and relevant information • “None of them in there seem to have heard of machine-guns and artillery. I tell you Joey, one machine-gun operated right could wipe out an entire squadron of the best cavalry in the world – German or British” ”I mean, look what happened to the Light Brigade at Balaclava when they took on the Russian guns – none of them seem to remember that. And the French learnt the lesson in the Franco-Prussian War. But you can’t say anything to them, Joey. If you do they call you defeatist, or some such rubbish. I honestly think that some of them in there only want to win this war if the cavalry can win it.” War Horse p34

• On both the Western and Eastern, the horse was regularly used as a pack animal. Because railway lines could not withstand artillery bombardments, which shelled the areas directly to the rear of entrenched battle lines, horses carried supplies between the railheads and the rear trenches, though horses were not used in the actual trench zone. This role of horse was critical, and thus horse fodder was the single largest commodity Britain shipped to its Army in France during the war, even above ammunition shells. In 1917, Britain had over a million horses and mules in service, but harsh conditions, especially over winter, resulted in heavy losses, particularly amongst the heavy Clydesdale horses that drew the guns. Over the course of the war, Britain lost 484,000 horses (roughly one horse for every two men). (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horses_in_warfare )

• The Polish army used cavalry to defend their nation against the armies of Nazi Germany during the 1939 invasion. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horses_in_warfare )

• “We had won, I heard it said; but horse lay dead and dying everywhere. More than a quarter of the squadron had been lost in that one action.” War Horse p45

• “”What a waste,” the Captain said “What a ghastly waste. Maybe now when they see this they’ll understand that you can’t send horses into a wire and machine-guns. Maybe now they’ll think again.”” War horse p55 This is a good quote to start off a section on the WEAKNESSES of the book. Were the horses really thrown against barbed wire? as you know, after 1914, when the trenches were established, the cavalry weren't really used much in this way (have you done a google search for "cavalry in WW1" yet?
 * Tactics**

• “They are not circus animals, they are heroes, and they should be treated as such.” War Horse p58

• “the world has gone quite mad. When noble creatures such as these are forced to become beasts of burden, the world has gone mad” War horse p59-61 • Talking to Joey. “That’s what this war is all about, my friend, its about which of us is madder. And clearly you British started with an advantage. You were mad beforehand” War Horse P61 Find sources which back up the idea that the war was insane. E.g. Kaiser called the English "Mad as March Hares" in 1908 Daily Telegraph interview; Wilhelm himself was considered unhinged (find examples of his strange character traits); patriotism meant that many people welcomed war with absolute delight (e.g. picture of Hitler greeting the news of the outbreak of war with delight in 1914); what AJP Taylor called "War by time-table" was utterly mad - the fact that all of these countries "stumbled over the precipice" in 1914. Once war HAD broken out the tactics of the Somme (march over slowly to face the machine guns) was ARGUABLY crazy - hence General Haig (a cavalryman, incidentally) was known as the "Butcher of the Somme".
 * The Insanity of the War**

• “… the front line which in spite of almost continuous offensives and counter-offensives moved only a matter of a few hundred yards in either direction.” War Horse p64 → Through this the author is trying to covey that there is a stalemate between the armies, as everyday the death toll increases and more are injured for no reason whatsoever, it is pointless, a waste. = so find some sources to elaborate on the way in which the war had become a stalemate
 * Stalemate**

• Rudi (an admirer of Tophorn) “Does he not personify all that men try to be and can never be”… “We don’t belong in the same universe as a creature like this” War Horse p89

• Topthorn deceases, Friedrich(kind old German canon operator) indignantly exclaims “They can’t do it. I see it all the time. Too much work on short rations and living out all winter. I see it all the time. A horse like this can only stand so much. Heart failure, poor fellow. It makes me angry every time it happens. We could not treat horse like this – we treat our machines better.” War horse p91

• “But I remember you telling us when we first come here that a horse’s life is p’raps even more important than a man’s, ‘cos an horse hasn’t got no evil in him ‘cepting any that’s put there by men. I remember you saying that our job in the Veterinary Corps was to work night and day, twenty six hours a day if need be save and help every horse that we could, that every horse was valuable to the war effort. No horse, no guns. No horse, no ammunition. No horse, no cavalry. No horse, no ambulances. No horse, no water for the troops a the front. Lifeline of the whole army.” War horse p118