Home > AA312 Total War & Social Change 1914-1955
Question: Write a commentary on the extract, saying what the document is, setting it in its historical context, commenting on specific points in the text, and summing up the historical significance of the extract for the study of total war and social change.
Answer: The extract is from a letter by James Ellis, World War I veteran, to the producers of a BBC television series “The Great War” dated July 1963. The 26 part television series was broadcast in 1964 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the outbreak of World War I . As the series was televised in 1964, Ellis was presumably aware of its production and so wrote the letter relating his experiences. The series featured veteran interviews and so an appeal for veterans to share their experiences must have been made. Therefore, although the letter is a private source, Ellis was likely to be aware that it may be made public. As the letter was written some fifty years after the events, it could be described as a secondary source although as it relates to Ellis’s own first-hand experiences it could also be a primary source.
According to the extract, Ellis volunteered for military service ...(short extract)
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- Subject: World War 1 and 2
- Course: AA312
- Level: Degree
- Year: 2nd/3rd
- Mark: 71%
- Words: 1000
- Date submitted: January 13, 2009
- Date written: February, 2007
- References: Yes
- Document type: Essay*
- Essay ID: 87
