Edmund Blunden's Undertones Of War Undertones Of War

A Beautifully Illustrated Edition Of Edmund Blunden's Rich Prose Memoir. John Greening Couples The Original And Unrevised Version Of The Text With The Best Of Blunden's Own Annotations, Commentaries, And Illustrations. Edmund Blunden (1896-1974) Was One Of The Youngest Of The War Poets, Enlisting Straight From School To Find Himself In Some Of The Western Front's Most Notorious Hot-spots. His Prose Memoir, Written In A Rich, Allusive Vein, Full Of Anecdote And Human Interest, Is Unique For Its Quiet Authority And For The Potency Of Its Dream-like Narrative. Once We Accept The Archaic Conventions And Catch The Tone -- Which Can Be By Turns Horrifying Or Hilarious -- Undertones Of War Gradually Reveals Itself As A Masterpiece. It Is Clear Why It Has Remained In Print Since It First Appeared In 1928. This New Edition Not Only Offers The Original Unrevised Version Of The Prose Narrative, Written At White Heat When Blunden Was Teaching In Japan And Had No Access To His Notes, But Provides A Great Deal Of Supplementary Material Never Before Gathered Together. Blunden's 'preliminary' Expresses The Lifelong Compulsion He Felt 'to Go Over The Ground Again' And For Half A Century He Prepared New Prefaces, Added Annotations. All Those Prefaces And A Wide Selection Of His Commentaries Are Included Here-marginalia From Friends' First Editions, Remarks In Letters, Extracts From Later Essays, And A Substantial Part Of His War Diary. John Greening Has Provided A Scholarly Introduction Discussing The Bibliographical And Historical Background, And Brings His Poet's Eye To A Much Expanded (and More Representative) Selection Of Blunden's War Poetry. For The First Time We Can See The Poet Blunden As The Major Figure He Was. Blunden Had Always Hoped For A Properly Illustrated Edition Of The Work, And Kept A Folder Full Of Possible Pictures. The Editor, With The Blunden Family's Help, Has Selected Some Of The Best Of Them To Include In This New Edition.--jacket. [edmund Blunden] ; Edited By John Greening. Originally Published: London, R. Cobden-sanderson,1928. Includes Bibliographical References And Indexes. Cover 1 Edmund Blunden's Undertones of War 4 Copyright 5 Dedication 6 Acknowledgements 8 Contents 12 List of Figures 16 List of Plates 18 Abbreviations 22 Chronology of Edmund Blunden’s Life and Works 24 Introduction 38 OPERATION ORDER N° SECRET 61 A Note on the Poetry 63 The Sunlit Vale 65 Textual History 68 PART ONE: Undertones of War 74 Preliminary 76 I: The Path without Primroses 78 II: Trench Education 84 III: The Cherry Orchard 98 IV: The Sudden Depths 104 V: Contrasts 114 VI: Specimen of the War of Attrition 122 VII: Steel Helmets for All 128 VIII: The Calm 134 IX: The Storm 142 X: A Home from Home 154 XI: Very Secret 162 XII: Caesar went into Winter Quarters 174 XIII: The Impossible Happens 184 XIV: An Ypres Christmas 188 XV: Theatre of War 196 XVI: A German Performance 204 XVII: Departures 208 XVIII: Domesticities 216 XIX: The Spring Passes 222 XX: Like Samson in his Wrath 228 XXI: The Crash of Pillars 234 XXII: Backwaters 242 XXIII: The Cataract 248 XXIV: 1917 in Fading Light 254 XXV: Coming of Age 260 XXVI: School, not at Wittenberg 264 XXVII: My Luck 268 A Supplement of Poetical Interpretations and Variations 274 A House in Festubert 276 The Guard’s Mistake 277 Two Voices 278 Illusions 279 Escape 280 Preparations for Victory 281 Come On, My Lucky Lads 282 At Senlis Once 283 The Zonnebeke Road 284 Trench Raid near Hooge 285 Concert Party: Busseboom 286 Rural Economy (1917) 287 E.W.T.: On the Death of his Betty 288 Battalion in Rest 289 Vlamertinghe: Passing the Château, July, 1917 290 Third Ypres 293 Pillbox 296 The Welcome 297 Gouzeaucourt: The Deceitful Calm 298 The Prophet 299 II Peter ii, 22(1921) 301 Recognition 302 La Quinque Rue 303 The Ancre at Hamel: Afterwards 304 ‘Trench Nomenclature’ 305 A.G.A.V. 306 Their Very Memory 307 On Reading that the Rebuilding of Ypres Approached Completion 308 Another Journey from Béthune to Cuinchy 311 Flanders Now 314 Return of the Native* 315 The Watchers 316 PART TWO: Supplementary Text 318 A Further Supplement of Poems (2015): Compiled by the Editor with Notes 320 The Festubert Shrine 323 Festubert: The Old German Line 325 In Festubert 326 Thiepval Wood 327 ‘Transport Up’ at Ypres 328 Les Halles d’Ypres 329 Clear Weather 330 Trees on the Calais Road 332 Mont de Cassel 333 Clare’s Ghost 335 Malefactors 337 1916 seen from 1921 339 A Farm near Zillebeke 341 The Aftermath 342 The Midnight Skaters 344 Warning to Troops 346 An Infantryman 348 Inaccessibility in the Battlefield 349 Report on Experience 351 Into the Salient 353 Premature Rejoicing 355 Winter Stars 356 The Memorial 1914–1918 357 The Branch Line 359 ‘Can You Remember?’ 360 On a Picture by Dürer: ‘Sonnenuntergang’ 361 Exorcized: Written in October 1938 362 In May 1916: Near Richebourg St.Vaast 364 Farm behind Battle Zone 365 Company Commander, 1917 366 The Halted Battalion 367 Ancre Sunshine 368 1917 Diary 370 Poperinghe Sunday 8 July 1917 372 Poperinghe— V Camp Monday 9 July 1917 372 V Camp— Tuesday 10 July 1917 373 V Camp— Wednesday 11 July 1917 373 V Camp— Thursday 12 July 1917 374 Houlle— Friday 13 July 1917 374 Houlle— Saturday 14 July 1917 374 Houlle Sunday 15 July 1917 375 C Camp near Elverdinghe Monday 16 July 1917 375 C Camp Tuesday 17 July 1917 376 C Camp Wednesday 18 July 1917 376 C Camp Thursday 19 July 1917 377 C Camp Friday 20 July 1917 377 C Camp Saturday 21 July 1917 378 C Camp Sunday 22 July 1917 378 C Camp Monday 23 July 1917 378 C Camp Tuesday 24 July 1917 379 C Camp Wednesday 25 July 1917 379 CANAL BANK (198 DUGOUT) Thursday 26 July 1917 380 C CAMP Friday 27 July 1917 380 CANAL BANK Saturday 28 July 1917 380 LA BRIQUE Sunday 29 July 1917 381 LA BRIQUE Monday 30 July 1917 381 BILGE Tuesday 31 July 1917 382 NEAR ST JULIEN Wednesday 1 August 1917 382 FALKENHAYN REDOUBT Thursday 2 August 1917 383 CANAL BANK Friday 3 August 1917 383 SCHOOL CAMP Saturday 4 August 1917 384 SCHOOL CAMP Sunday 5 August 1917 384 Notes to the Prose Text of Undertones of War 386 TITLE, DEDICATION, AND EPIGRAPHS 391 PRELIMINARY 392 NOTES TO PAGES 5–9: I THE PATH WITHOUT PRIMROSES 401 NOTES TO PAGES 11–23: II TRENCH EDUCATION 405 NOTES TO PAGES 25–28: III THE CHERRY ORCHARD 414 NOTES TO PAGES 31–39: IV THE SUDDEN DEPTHS 417 NOTES TO PAGES 41–48: V CONTRASTS 424 NOTES TO PAGES 49–53: VI SPECIMEN OF THE WAR OF ATTRITION 428 NOTES TO PAGES 55–59: VII STEEL HELMETS FOR ALL 434 NOTES TO PAGES 61–68: VIII THE CALM 436 NOTES TO PAGES 69–80: IX THE STORM 441 NOTES TO PAGES 81–88: X A HOME FROM HOME 450 NOTES TO PAGES 89–99: XI VERY SECRET 455 NOTES TO PAGES 101–110: XII CAESAR WENT INTO WINTER QUARTERS 460 NOTES TO PAGES 111–114: XIII THE IMPOSSIBLE HAPPENS 467 NOTES TO PAGES 115–121: XIV AN YPRES CHRISTMAS 469 NOTES TO PAGES 123–129: XV THEATRE OF WAR 474 January Full Moon, Ypres 479 NOTES TO PAGES 131–133: XVI A GERMAN PERFORMANCE 479 NOTES TO PAGES 135–142: XVII DEPARTURES 483 NOTES TO PAGES 143–148: XVIII DOMESTICITIES 487 NOTES TO PAGES 149–154: XIX THE SPRING PASSES 490 Bleue Maison 493 NOTES TO PAGES 155–159: XX LIKE SAMSON IN HIS WRATH 497 NOTES TO PAGES 161–167: XXI THE CRASH OF PILLARS 499 NOTES TO PAGES 169–173: XXII BACKWATERS 505 NOTES TO PAGES 175–180: XXIII THE CATARACT 508 NOTES TO PAGES 181–186: XXIV 1917 IN FADING LIGHT 511 NOTES TO PAGES 187–190: XXV COMING OF AGE 514 NOTES TO PAGES 191–194: XXVI SCHOOL, NOT AT WITTENBERG 516 NOTES TO PAGES 195–200: XXVII MY LUCK 517 Notes to ‘A Supplement of Poetical Interpretations and Variations’ 522 A HOUSE IN FESTUBERT 523 THE GUARD’S MISTAKE 524 TWO VOICES 525 ILLUSIONS 525 ESCAPE 527 PREPARATIONS FOR VICTORY 527 COME ON, MY LUCKY LADS 528 AT SENLIS ONCE 528 THE ZONNEBEKE ROAD 529 TRENCH RAID NEAR HOOGE 530 CONCERT PARTY: BUSSEBOOM 531 RURAL ECONOMY (1917) 531 E.W.T.: ON THE DEATH OF HIS BETTY 532 BATTALION IN REST 532 VLAMERTINGHE: PASSING THE CHÂTEAU, JULY, 1917 533 THIRD YPRES 534 PILLBOX 537 THE WELCOME 537 GOUZEAUCOURT: THE DECEITFUL CALM 538 THE PROPHET 539 II PETER ii, 22 (1921) 540 RECOGNITION 540 LA QUINQUE RUE 541 THE ANCRE AT HAMEL: AFTERWARDS 541 ‘TRENCH NOMENCLATURE’ 542 A.G.A.V. 543 THEIR VERY MEMORY 544 ON READING THAT THE REBUILDING OF YPRES APPROACHED COMPLETION 545 ANOTHER JOURNEY FROM BÉTHUNE TO CUINCHY 546 FLANDERS NOW 547 RETURN OF THE NATIVE 547 THE WATCHERS 548 Select Bibliography 550 Index of Titles and First Lines 556 Index 559 In what is one of the finest autobiographies to come out of the First World War, the distinguished poet Edmund Blunden records his experiences as an infantry subaltern in France and Flanders. Blunden took part in the disastrous battles of the Somme, Ypres and Passchendaele, describing the latter as 'murder, not only to the troops, but to their singing faiths and hopes'. In his compassionate yet unsentimental prose, he tells of the heroism and despair found among the officers. Blunden's poems show how he found hope in the natural landscape; the only thing that survives the terrible betrayal enacted in the Flanders fields Content: INTRODUCTION AND TEXTUAL HISTORY CHRONOLOGY PRELIMINARY UNDERTONES OF WAR A SUPPLEMENT OF POETICAL INTERPRETATIONS AND VARIATIONS NOTES TO UNDERTONES AND THE SUPPLEMENT OF POETICAL INTERPRETATIONS AND VARIATIONS A FURTHER SUPPLEMENT OF POEMS (2014) COMPILED BY THE EDITOR, WITH NOTES 1917 DIARY