First two sections 455

Again from Computer Hell Central, here are the first two assignments--good for the first two or three weeks--for 455. i PROMISE to get this situation fixed as soon as I get the new machine. I hope the demons in this one don't transfer to the newbie! 1. Europe before the apocalypse, l870-l9l4 Readings: Gilbert, Introduction + chapters 1-2; Thomas Hardy, "Channel Firing," Penguin Book of First World War Poetry. Recommended readings: Vladimir Dedijer, The Road to Sarajevo. If you want to understand the mentality of the teenaged assassins of Franz Ferdinand, this is an essential read. They were the Al-Quaeda of their day, though necessarily more localized since they didn’t have modern communications, suitcase nukes or airplanes to hijack in their day. Recommended film: Mayerling(l969), starring Catherine de Neuve. If not for Crown Prince Rudolf's suicide at the Mayerling hunting lodge in the early l880s, Franz Ferdinand would never have become heir to the Habsburg throne and Austria-Hungary's tragic last years might have turned out very differently. 2. Not your six-week wonder: the coming of global war, June -December l9l4. Readings: Gilbert, chapters 3-6(l9l4); Penguin book, Anna Akhmatova, "July l9l4," Englund, 1-76, l9l4. Recommended readings: Barbara Tuchman, The Guns of August. This is an impressive chronicle of how the powers basically stumbled into this conflict. President John F. Kennedy read it just prior to the Cuban Missle Crisis and was guided by some of its conclusions as he attempted to reach a resolution with Khrushchev in October l962. Recommended website: The British Army in the Great War, www.1914-l9l8.net. A great and comprehensive site covering the British and dominion armies in World War I. Remember, Great Britain was an empire and drew troops from all corners of the globe. India was particularly well represented. See an overview of their activity at www.king-emperor.com. There are also Irish, Australian, New Zealand, Newfoundland and Canadian sites aplenty. They are too numerous to list, but you can find them with a simple google search.