Tomorrow is Remembrance Day. For many, this somber day is uncomplicated and direct. Wake up. Put on dapper attire (perhaps medals). Place poppy over heart. Attend parade. Sing at concert. Educate a young person. Be silent for a moment. Now. Some might say that reducing such a complex event – like war – to a simple cliche is inaccurate and, perhaps, irresponsible. I say, yes. Yes it is. Geoff Dyer’s opening line in The Mission of the Somme did the same thing about the First World War:
First World War – Cause unclear but fun at first. All over by Christmas, ha,
ha, ha. Trenches. Stalemate. Lions led by donkeys. Piles of corpses. Horror
beyond words. Completely pointless.
And that’s the problem. When you condense an event – like a war – into a single cliche or a one-dimensional memory, well, you create a monoculture of pride-in-tragedy, um, culture, that kinda sorta celebrates war and conflict by the way it remembers such events. Check out this recent ad for Remembrance Week.
Funnily enough – and I use that term very purposefully because I’ve written about humour and war before – human beings don’t really conceptualize war as “tragic” at all. I mean, certain individuals and relatively small groups do, but they’re pretty much always overwhelmed by the shouting champions of the military industrial complex who celebrate the fighting force of their nation. Let’s be honest, though. If we thought war was that tragic then we wouldn’t do it anymore. For thousands of years, strapping on sticks or swords or muskets or rifles or machine guns or lasers is how we’ve solved problems once words lose meaning and power. But if war shouldn’t be remembered as tragic, how the heck should it be remembered?
From Punch and the London Charivari (1917).
Today – and every day-before-Remembrance Day – I’ll make a case for humour being included in what is a multi-dimensional modern memory of war in Canada and beyond. The fact is that, believe it or not, Rick Mercer and Stephen Colbert are more accurate cultural representations of how we – people – respond to war and conflict than, say, Wilfred Owen and John McCRae.
A soldier’s recollection of Passchendaele or pictures of 1 July 1916 on the Somme or the graveyards near Verdun or the memorial at Vimy Ridge all account for the truthful poignancy of clichéd responses to the war; however, it is dangerous to rely solely on such reactions, as they supplant many other facets of the war, such as humour, and simplify a very complex event of the past.
With that in mind, here are three things that should be included in tomorrow’s Remembrance Day Ceremonies:
1. A Trench Song. During a Remembrance Day concert, throw out a fun, spirited trench ballad! If it’s an adult-only event, well, make it a bawdy one! Did you know that none of the poems read at Remembrance Day ceremonies were actually published during the wars that they’re about? War poetry didn’t become popular or even circulate in the public discourse until the 1930s, when a charismatic young fellow named Hitler began beating the European war drums once more. In fact, between 1914-1918 songs helped to pick-up some understandably unhappy fellows who were knee-deep in muck and fighting for more and more foggy reasons as the days turned into years. Funny songs were – and still are – factual artifacts from horribly violent events. They’ll also lighten the mood a bit.
2. A Cartoon (above). These cultural artifacts got a tonne of play in the First World War – the event that inspired Remembrance Day. There are literally millions to choose from and it is easy to tie their message to some general – or specific – themes of the conflict(s) you’re remembering.
3. Compelling – hilarious – stories from Veterans. These men have, literally, laughed in the face of death. I’ve met these Veterans and heard these stories. A more human perspective on remembering war and conflict is one that incorporates a myriad representation of emotion.
So there it is. By no means is this article an argument for not remembering war as perhaps the most vulgar expression of humanity.War truly is tragic. And we should never, ever do it. But it is inaccurate and a bit dishonest to reflect on events like the First World War as being solely tragic ones.
Because if war was really so bad we would never, ever do it. Ever.