Book description
The First World War largely directed the course of the twentieth
century. Fought on three continents, the war saw 14 million killed and
34 million wounded, countless millions of people displaced and the
ends and beginnings of several states. Its impact shaped the world we
live in today, and the language of the trenches, the common speech of
the participants, continues to live in the modern consciousness. One
of the enduring myths of the First World War is that the experience of
the trenches was not talked about. Yet dozens of words entered or
became familiar in the English language as a direct result of the
soldiers' experiences. This book looks at how the first-hand and
second-hand experience of the First World War changed the English
language, adding words that were both in slang and standard military
use, and modifying the usage and connotations of existing words and
phrases. Illustrated with material from the authors' collections and
photographs of the objects of war, the book will look at how the words
emerged into everyday language.
Peter Doyle is a scientist and military historian specialising
in the role of terrain in warfare. He is a visiting Professor at
University College London, and is co-secretary of the All Party
Parliamentary War Heritage Group.
Julian Walker is an artist and writer. He has worked on art and
education projects with schools, refugee groups, and prisons, and has
mde site-specific work for major galleries and museums in the UK and
abroad. He works with the Learning Department at the British Library,
where he leads workshops on language, literature, art, history and
printing. He is the author of Discovering Words and Evolving English
Explored for the British Library.
