#16 - World War One (WWI): Roy Casagranda

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon Austin School professor Roy Casagranda lectures on the origins and combat of World War 1. Professor Casagranda brings an idiosyncratic and unvarnished perspective on the Great War, which ended not with a peace, as everyone had hoped, but what French general Ferdinand Foch prophetically called in 1919 a 'Twenty Year Armistice'. It would turn out that Foch was wrong, but only by only a few months... The original YouTube video can be found here. The Austin School, which has many great lectures from a variety of presenters is found here, please consider subscribing. --- Dulce et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen Bent double, like old beggars under sacksKnock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,Till in the haunting flares we turned our backs, And towards our distant rest began to trudge. Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots, But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame, all blind; Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots Of tired, outstripped Five-Nines that dropped behind. Gas! GAS! Quick, boys!—An ecstasy of fumbling Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time, But someone still was yelling out and stumbling And flound’ring like a man in fire or lime Dim through the misty panes and thick green light, As under a green sea, I saw him drowning. In all my dreams before my helpless sight He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning. If in some smothering dreams, you too could pace Behind the wagon that we flung him in, And watch the white eyes writhing in his face, His hanging face, like a devil's sick of sin, If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs, Obscene as cancer, Bitter as the cud Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,– My friend, you would not tell with such high zest To children ardent for some desperate glory, The old Lie: Dulce et decorum estPro patria mori. Composed October 1917, published posthumously 1920. --- As always these talks are syndicated for educational and nonprofit purposes in accordance with Fair Use. They are produced ad-free, because I listen to my own stuff on here and like you, I hate ads. If you are able, donations to support the project, which is a labor of love for me, ⁠⁠are available through Spotify. ⁠⁠Anything helps and is felt. Furthermore my historical and philosophical writing, which is also entirely free is available at my blog, ⁠⁠⁠⁠Hemlock⁠⁠⁠⁠, on Substack. The music of the intro and outro (Bach's Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major) is licensed under non-commercial attribution, and can be ⁠⁠⁠⁠found here⁠⁠⁠⁠ and has been remixed by me. Enjoy. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support