How WW1 Affected Children Essay Example
How Children Were Affected by World War One
Debate over who or what started World War One has been happening for nearly a century. However, one thing that historians agree about is the far extending affects of World War One on the “Lost Generation” and the ensuing generations. Women of the ‘Lost Generation’ were the only people to gain anything from the Great War. A group of people that are not talked about commonly whenever discussing wars are the children. We seem to forget that daughters and sons lose out on a father or mother during wartime and some never get to see them again.
During the war, men, on average, were only given home-return status annually. This meant that they would be among their family for only three days, once a year. Mathematically, that turns into about 1/122 days out of the year for a father to visit and spend time with his child. The rest of the year he was out at war risking his life. However, propaganda advertised that soldiers would be able to visit with their families more often than what actually happened. Because of the duration of the war and the seldom visits the fathers were granted, some children grew about without a father for many years during World War One. The children and their mothers were left to near poverty as many of their main sources of income was their war pension. Some children did not even have the experience of meeting their father as they were birthed during the beginnings of World War One and their father was sent off and killed prior to any homecoming.
Whenever a soldier was close to death, he or she (mainly he in World War One) was allowed to write to their family and could write what they pleased. However, many kept their words positive even though they were aware that they would pass away. Even whenever a child learned of his or her’s fathers death, many were not affected. They had not been able to bond with this man and therefore did not have much care for him. The war took away a father figure in many
Debate over who or what started World War One has been happening for nearly a century. However, one thing that historians agree about is the far extending affects of World War One on the “Lost Generation” and the ensuing generations. Women of the ‘Lost Generation’ were the only people to gain anything from the Great War. A group of people that are not talked about commonly whenever discussing wars are the children. We seem to forget that daughters and sons lose out on a father or mother during wartime and some never get to see them again.
During the war, men, on average, were only given home-return status annually. This meant that they would be among their family for only three days, once a year. Mathematically, that turns into about 1/122 days out of the year for a father to visit and spend time with his child. The rest of the year he was out at war risking his life. However, propaganda advertised that soldiers would be able to visit with their families more often than what actually happened. Because of the duration of the war and the seldom visits the fathers were granted, some children grew about without a father for many years during World War One. The children and their mothers were left to near poverty as many of their main sources of income was their war pension. Some children did not even have the experience of meeting their father as they were birthed during the beginnings of World War One and their father was sent off and killed prior to any homecoming.
Whenever a soldier was close to death, he or she (mainly he in World War One) was allowed to write to their family and could write what they pleased. However, many kept their words positive even though they were aware that they would pass away. Even whenever a child learned of his or her’s fathers death, many were not affected. They had not been able to bond with this man and therefore did not have much care for him. The war took away a father figure in many