learntoquestion ltq discussions

The point of World War I was essentially to take down Germany and defend our allies. After the war, empires had collapsed, old countries were abolished and new ones were formed. Some countries gained land while others lost some. International organizations were created and millions of lives were lost. This all matter because knowing all this begs to ask, was it all worth it? The war was essentially started over the assassination of an Austrian Prince. More and more countries were dragged into the war to defend their allies and dissolve the German threat. This mattered because the whole world was watching Germany. They worried they were trying to expand their lands and power across Europe and joined the war hoping to stop their efforts.

We learned how horrible war really is. We also learned how pointless it can be. It some films we watched they mentioned soldiers never knew if they were winning or losing, just that they were still fighting. They lived and died in conditions we could never imagine let alone endure. Incredibly young boys left their families and lied about their ages to join the war. We know what the true beginning of WWI was but how can those events compare to the ones that would take place afterward, costing millions their lives and homes?

I do think thats true. Boundaries were changed after the war, this was physically changing Europe forever but the world was politically changed as well. The political order of Europe, the Middle East, other parts of the world were restructured after the fall of the German Empire and others. The war also gave us opportunities to improve medical practices and military performance.

It’s important to understand World War I and learn about it because it shaped the world we live in. We know this war changed the world forever but also, learning about it and the insanity of the war helps our generations to not repeat the past. It’s also important to learn about the Treaty of Versailles and how the world treated Germany after the war and the consequences they faced.

This war was quite literally pointless. It stemmed from ego issues and attitude that if given an ounce of maturity could’ve saved millions of lives. There was so much lost in this war, and nothing gained. The lessons and understanding we gained from this war were, relatively, common knowlage and was absolutely not worth a world war. “The war to end all wars,” this was what they told us, this is what they were trying to sell us, the propaganda, but less than 20 years later we would be having yet another, “war to end all wars.” It expedited the need for allys in the rapidly growing and globalzing world. The knowledge that a war like that could start with something so small, ridiculous, it lead to more allyships -- for better or worse-- these can create amazing opportunities and relationships between countries but after both world wars we see the damages allies cause. From this utterly pointless and ridiculous war we learned that politicians have large egos, and allyship is powerful. Both things we knew before.

The first world war prompted quck technological advancment which changes the nature and impact of war, but also shifts power dynamics leading to world war 2 and decolonization as well as much domestic policy. Develo[ments like the machine gun, gas weaponary, tanks, and airplanes all come in to use or are first invented during WWI; these inventions make necessary trench warfare, completely changing common war tactics. However, any offensives made were baraded by gas and machine guns leaving many dead and none alive. The larger death toll and damage done in the war, the most in history a that point, creates dysfunction in all participating countries but especially those paying retribution. Germany, after the treaty of versailles, is ravaged economically and morally leaving space for the rise of facism; this also applies to other, later axis powers, such as Italy. Lastly, during and after war workforces and manufacutring across the world are changed which leads to women entering the workforce more prevadently, the progression or regression of many economies, etc.

The War displays how the ego of world leaders is placed before the lives and or benefit of their countries civilians. The never before seen death count and its reporting/reaction shows just how power-hungry and selfish leaders can be. The majority of soldiers in WW1 didn’t even know what they were fighting for and they were there under peer pressure. Their undying and unwavering patriotism prevailed well for the governments but millions of lives were lost in WW1 to a war that was completely and utterly stupid. This came down to two countries disagreeing over an apology, one that although I don’t believe had to have been issued could’ve easily been given and avoided this whole thing. This is important to look at because the exploitation of the patriotism that war becomes a repeating pattern that unites countries, and people, against eachother when all they know is government propaganda. To learn and reflect on ww1 is to understand the egocentric nature of leaders and their detrimental impacts on their countries, their people, and the world.

In general, war occurs whenever a nation is cementing itself as a global power, and comes into conflict with another, already established one. As such the “point” of the Great War was to show the world the military strength of various European powers. Of course, this is not the technical reason given. Officially, World War One was started because of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, by Gavrilo Princip, who was a member of the Black Hand, a secret Serbian nationalist group. When Austria-Hungary demanded the Serbian government apologize, and it refused to do so, a series of alliances kicked into action and started the conflict known as World War One. Unfortunately, we don’t have very much at all to show for the millions who lost their lives. One of the main agreements in the post World War treaties was that Germany would greatly reduce their military and pay an insane amount of money to the victors of the war. However, both of these ultimately led to nothing, as Hitler still increased his military (and got away with it) and a war-stricken Germany was unable to pay back its debt. Additionally, Europe as a whole lost a lot from the war. Germany, a once prosperous nation, had completely regressed into a war-torn country with a failing economy. It required a huge amount of foreign aid to return it to a global power, but for a time, Germany was a terrible place to live. Even in the countries which won the war, major casualties in their young men harmed their working forces and economies. All of this destruction and death ultimately was not useful to the world, and was not for a cause which matters.

The lessons which World War One should have taught us were simple. A pointless war started to show off military strength is not a good reason to collapse entire economies and lead to the deaths of millions of the working force. However, the axis powers decided, just twenty-one years later, to start a second World War, showing that this lesson fell on deaf ears. Even in the modern day, China is increasing its military spending, which makes it seem as though we could be close to another war. As such, it appears that the only lessons we learned from World War One is that a war doesn’t need to be useful to be catastrophic.

It is definitely the case that the world dramatically changed after the First World War. Before it, public consciousness generally viewed war in an adventurous and fun sense, not realizing the horror that it was. Even children, as young as twelve, enlisted, since everyone was going to fight. However, what soldiers on the front found was an entirely different story. The disgusting lifestyle that trench soldiers had to go through sobered up the fighting force quickly, and soldiers had to cope with their new reality. The war also changed the role of women. While before, women rarely held industrial jobs, when the men left to fight, there was still a demand for weapons, tanks, and other instruments of war. So, women were promoted to a higher social class. The First World War also brought mass despair and uncertainty to the world at large, as many believed that society had grown too dignified for war.

World War One is an important event to learn about because it shows us how war can be started even when there is no reason behind it. It was a pointless war, with an insane amount of loss. The First World War was a terrible event which should never be repeated in the future, which is why we must understand the circumstances for which it occurred, so we don’t make the same mistakes twice.

By examining the events of World War II that occurred just around 20 years later, it is clear that the people who needed the lesson from World War I the most - the world leaders themselves - did not internalize it. The petty alliances and shady agreements continued, even with efforts focused on foreign relationships by people like Woodrow Wilson, and the establishment of the League of Nations. From this war, we as citizens should learn that war is never as glamorous as nationalism portrays it as. We should also learn the dangers that rapid industrialization in the war production sector has on innocent civilians, and in turn, all of us. We are not guaranteed safety in a global war thanks to the escalation of arms-races that were initiated by World War I.

Many aspects of the global dynamic changed permanently from World War I. For starters, the U.S. was further established as a major world power. The dynamic within Europe specifically changed, with the Russian, Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman empires collapsing. Many territorial lines were redrawn, leading to a new ethnic distribution within Europe. World War I also gave rise to various movements and uprisings that had permanent effects on modern society, like the Russian Revolution and the women’s rights movement.

Everyone must understand the catalysts and effects of World War I in order to truly ensure that it is not repeated. It is especially important to understand how war escalates with the state of modern weapons today. The devastating power of advanced warfare like chemical attacks demonstrated in World War I was a precursor of the development of modern warfare and arms-races. With much more deadly and rapid nuclear weapons on-hand for many world powers, our entire race could be wiped out for the same reason World War I started.

World War 1 was a pointless war, it resulted in the deaths of millions of people, both military and civilian, and the cost can not be justified. I was reading about how the war resulted in over 9 million military deaths and 7 million civilian deaths. In terms of what was gained and lost the gains are difficult to see. The Treaty of Versailles is one which resulted in significant changes to the political map of Europe. However, these minimal gains must be weighed against the the loss of millions of lives. The extreme amount of death along with the fact that it didnt resolve the underlying issues that led to the conflict, highlights the need for peaceful solutions to international conflicts. There was a world before the First World War and an entirely different world afterwards, the war had an extreme impact on the world. It shattered the optimism and confidence of the pre-war era, and it started the beginning of a new era of anxiety and insecurity. The war also began a period of social, political, technological change, and the development of new military technologies. By looking at this war, we can gain a better understanding of the causes and consequences of conflict, and how war can shape the course of history. It also allows us to appreciate the sacrifices made by those who fought and died in the war, and to honor their memory. The photos we see put us there with the soldiers, they provide powerful visuals of the conflict. From inside the trenches to on the battlefields, and the devastation of war along with the daily lives of soldiers and civilians. These photos give us a view into the realities of the war. World War I serves as a reminder of the terrible cost of war, and the need for peaceful solutions to international disputes.

The four BIG questions I’d like you to address in this post depend on your thoughtful and careful examination of the five items above. As you respond, please make specific reference to these five items AS WELL AS anything relevant from class.

• We can debate the whys behind the war, the long-term and short-term causes (and I’m sure you’ve taken tests in other classes about this) etc. but here’s the essential question that matters: What was the point? What was gained from this war? What was lost? Why did it matter?
• What lessons should we learn from this war? (And by extension, what lessons did the world learn—at the time?)
• There are folks who argue that there was a world before the First World War and an entirely different world afterwards. Is that true? What changed forever?
• And finally, why is it important to understand World War I and learn about it, even if we can argue that war = insanity, (this one in particular)?

The “point” of the war was for unnecessary conquest and vain pride that had originally started due to the assassination of the heir Franz Ferdinand. Countries wanted to show each other up and prove who was the most powerful and who could claim the most land or money. It was pointless conflict that kept being instigated by deploying more troops with no stable goal in mind. Particularly the Allied Powers and the Central Powers. Many lives were lost, one article outlining that 13 million civilians were killed in addition to 8.5 million troops. This matters because it serves as a reminder of what unnecessary conflict can escalate too and how we need to avoid that at all costs. It also demonstrates how governments only care to push their own agendas. It reveals how cruel and extreme war is on so many levels. It is destructive to lives, land, governments, the economy, and even technology in the context of how advancements were made to be utilized to be destructive in the war. These technological advancements were in medicine, communications, manufacturing, and chemistry. Yes it is true that the worlds before and after the war were different. It was exposure to a large amount of death and destruction that it left people shocked and distraught at the new state of the world. It affected society and interactions and policies between countries in the desire to avoid such conflict. Precautions like the League of Nations were created to try and enforce this. World War I is important to learn about because it’s how we educate ourselves on the horrors of war, and how we make steps forward to prevent it from happening again. It’s also important to acknowledge not only the short term impacts it had, but the long term effects it also had which can get lost on people sometimes.

• We can debate the whys behind the war, the long-term and short-term causes (and I’m sure you’ve taken tests in other classes about this) etc. but here’s the essential question that matters: What was the point? What was gained from this war? What was lost? Why did it matter?

There is never a true point to war. The question of ethics and morality comes into play and the loss of human life is never justifiable by any “point.” The sudden cease-fire just goes to show that nothing was truly gained from the war. Sure, Germany and the gang “lost,” but arguably so did everyone else. Again, the staggering loss of life in this “great'' war just invalidates any triumph. Even the tangible things, such as land or power, were minimally improved. The only industry that improved drastically was that of warfare, and that is terrifying to think about, as it shows that humans are capable of working together to create things, but only if it is for violent and selfish reasons. Still, the war can be used as a way of learning about the pointlessness of war and help us to move on from tragic history.

• What lessons should we learn from this war? (And by extension, what lessons did the world learn—at the time?)

One thing that truly resonated with me was the fact that the soldiers’ who were going off to war described their initial thoughts of how the war was going to be a fun and “grand” time. They quickly learned that the war was going to be the complete opposite, leaving both physical and metaphysical scars on them for years to come. I think that was the biggest lesson learned, that it was not a “great” war, and was in fact a terrible war. This was learned both during and after the war, as the casualty counts from both times were staggering. The world learned a lesson in the value of human life and the pointlessness of war.

• There are folks who argue that there was a world before the First World War and an entirely different world afterwards. Is that true? What changed forever?

I think the world changed in the context of their view on war and the sheer violence it brings. The abrupt ending left a lot to be desired from the countless soldiers who went through hell and back and saw no fruit of their labors, so that shows that not much did change - at least not for the better. Their newfound awareness must have promptly dissipated, as we all know that World War II happened. It is so tragic that those returning from the trauma that was WWI often had to see their children go through the same thing in WWII.

• And finally, why is it important to understand World War I and learn about it, even if we can argue that war = insanity, (this one in particular)?