Traumatic Experiences of a Soldier in A.P.Herbert’s The Secret Battle

Abstract

A. P. Herbert's The Secret Battle is a classic novel of World War I. It is the story of an idealistic young officer called Harry Penrose. First in Gallipoli, then in France, he is tested and brought to breaking point. It is the story of one man's secret battle within himself: the fight to retain ideals of military glory amid the miseries of the trenches, to preserve a sense of duty to an incompetent command, to inspire his men with courage he had long ago lost. It is fairly short, but quite worthwhile for the amazing descriptions of the struggles, experienced by junior officers in Gallipoli and France. It is written as a sort of fictional memoir from the point of view of a narrator, who is writing to set the record straight about his friend, Harry Penrose. The story is a protest against the mercilessness of the military machine, and does a very effective job of showing that Penrose has been failed by the system. Although this study incorporates traumatic experiences of the soldiers and common people due to the wars waged by war mongers in order to fulfill their vested interests or selfish motives, it does not offer an analysis of authoritarian and imperialistic theories. Furthermore, examination of traumatic experience is the primary tool of analysis. The primary objective of this project is to explore the traumatic experiences of the soldiers in the First World War as described in The Secret Battle. It attempts to show the misuse of power and authority by the war mongers. It aims to show the pathetic condition of innocent, dedicated and devoted soldiers through the troublesome saga of Penrose who inspires his troops and tries very hard to serve the battalion well but gets tragic fate at last. This project analyzes the mental effects resulting from the torturous, inhuman, cruel and merciless treatment to the soldiers as well as the common people.