H482 Discussion Questions
January 19, 2016

1. Define "total war".  What are it's attributes?  How does Jay Winter define total war?
   
   
2. What does Creel tell us about the American war effort?
   
   
3. What can we learn from Ontario's reaction to the war?
   
   
4. For the German civilians, what was life on the home front like?  What was the cause of those conditions?
   
   
5. In some respects Marwick is a revisionist historian, arguing that war brought positive changes to British society.  What "positive" changes can be attributed to the war?
   
   
6. Marwick's essay is an interesting look at the focus of war studies as it existed at that time.  Considering that the essay was written in 1967, what do you think has changed in the study of war since then?  What new directions, focus of study, etc., do you think have taken place?
   
   
7. What does "Images of the Home Front" tell us about the nature of the war experience on the home front? Are there common themes?
   
   
8. Given those images, what pressures would civilians be subject to?  How do these images fit with Creel's piece?
   
   
9. How have this week's readings added to, or modified, your understanding of the concept known as 'total war' as experienced on the home front? What do you think is the single most significant thing you have learned this week from the readings regarding that concept?