the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist
“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx
the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist
“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx
May 12, 2025
This book (and Stanley Kubrick’s movie with the same name) depicts the harsh and dehumanizing reality of WWI. Written by someone who fought in the war in the French army, the author depicts the senseless slaughter which serves only greedy politicians and vain officers. A regiment is ordered to charge through a barrage of machine gun fire. When advance is impossible and 50% of the men die, the general decides to court martial and execute by firing squad some of the men for “cowardice.”
The novel does not claim to present actual people or events. Instead, it is based on the French and British’s repeated horrifying practice of executing soldiers to drive the others on. The French admit to executing 600–650, the British 300, and these numbers are probably understated.
This novel powerfully shows the wholesale brutality that technology has brought to war and barbaric senselessness.