Last week I attended a conference, “Literature, Memory, and the First World War,” that was held at the United States Military Academy, West Point, New York, from 11 – 14 September 2014.
Those who know me know that I am not by any stretch of the imagination a military historian, and that my interests lie in popular literatures, particularly science fiction, fantasy, weird fiction, and the pulp magazines, but often these supposedly escapist literatures deal with or involve serious affairs, and in the early twentieth century, this occurred following the Battle of Mons, the first battle of the First World War to involve the British Expeditionary Forces and the Germans. When I learned that West Poi nt would be hosting the conference, I sent in proposal. To my surprise, this proposal — “’The Battle of Mons’” and The Angels of Mons: The First Literary Reaction to the First Battle of the First World War and Its Aftermath” – was accepted for the section devoted to “Myth Making and Lies” and scheduled for 8:30 on Saturday morning.
I arrived on Friday and attended several sessions, hearing papers about such issues as the different treatments of the First World War in motion pictures made during the war and after the war. In addition, I had lively and informative discussions with several of the panelists about memorials and commemorative literatures, and I was likewise pleased to encounter a number of UConn Graduate Students. (The First World War is one of Professor Margaret Higonnet’s areas of specialization, and her work is very highly regarded.)
On Saturday morning I gave my presentation. Although three panelists had been scheduled, one had cancelled at the last minute, and I was thus paired with Professor Steve Lukits of the Royal Military College of Canada. He spoke on “’They that Have Power to Hurt and Will Do None:” Lying in the Literature of the Great War.” We worked well together. The panel’s moderator was Major Sean Case of West Point’s Department of English and Philosophy.  Nothing seemed to faze him, and when the projector’s remote control failed at the last moment, he operated it manually so that I was able to show the PowerPoint slides I had prepared.
My presentation provided a brief history of Mons and the disastrous (for the English) battle that was fought there on 24 and 25 August 1914. I then discussed novelist-turned-journalist Arthur Machen and described how his short story, “The Bowmen,” published in The Evening News on 29 September 1914, created an alternative narrative for the English, one in which they may have been overwhelmed but also were under the protection of St. George, whose ghostly archers prevented the Germans from destroying the English army. This counter-narrative became widely popular, and I described some of the responses. When Machen protested and tried to reclaim his narrative as pure fiction, I presented a variety of the disbelieving responses to his assertions. Finally, I presented a possible explanation and a conclusion for the popularity that can be defended but not substantiated. (All of this material is derived from a work in progress.)
The audience – I estimate there were between 30 – 40 people – were very interested, and the ensuing discussions were lively and enthusiastic. Professor Lukits and I responded to a number of questions.