World War Two was a traumatic war for many people, not just those fighting on the continent, but also for those on the Homefront. Great Britain also suffered due to the physical bombing of their country. This involvement, of both the British people, and of the British environment, has caused WWII to achieve a prominent place in the culture and memory of the British people. This association is expressed in different ways: from the official remembrance through war memorials and monuments, through an almost unconscious remembrance due to the remaining war damage dotting the urban landscape, and through how the war and its people are shown by different popular media such as television and movies. All of these elements work together to create the
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Not only did this serve as a reminder for those who had survived the conflict, but also created a new memory for those younger generations who had not experienced it first hand. These newscasts were by far not the first instances of media recounting the struggles of World War Two; some movies like The Wooden Horse, began showing in the 1950s while the memory of war was still fresh in the public mind. These media representation also did not just cover those who fought in the war overseas, but a popular series Dad’s Army showcases the heroics of the Home Guard. Media portrayals of war also served to not only memorialize those who had fought and died, but also encouraged a feeling of patriotism and greatness in the British people. Portrayals of the Second World War have become so common and recognized that they also can serve as understood background to stories that are more about social issues, like race and gender, but others also serve to complicate the often simplified narratives of good and evil. This deeper explanation of the narrative of World War Two has become necessary as its joined the cultural memory as an event of glory and success and the last great accomplishment of the British nation in addition to the fiction that the period directly after the war being an idyllic period of peace. This is not to say though, that media representations of the war have slowed or stopped in the recent years. The popular aforementioned series Dad’s Army, was made into a feature film in February 2016. This movie was not a success, at least in the minds of critics, for the simple fact that it showcased nothing
Not only did this serve as a reminder for those who had survived the conflict, but also created a new memory for those younger generations who had not experienced it first hand. These newscasts were by far not the first instances of media recounting the struggles of World War Two; some movies like The Wooden Horse, began showing in the 1950s while the memory of war was still fresh in the public mind. These media representation also did not just cover those who fought in the war overseas, but a popular series Dad’s Army showcases the heroics of the Home Guard. Media portrayals of war also served to not only memorialize those who had fought and died, but also encouraged a feeling of patriotism and greatness in the British people. Portrayals of the Second World War have become so common and recognized that they also can serve as understood background to stories that are more about social issues, like race and gender, but others also serve to complicate the often simplified narratives of good and evil. This deeper explanation of the narrative of World War Two has become necessary as its joined the cultural memory as an event of glory and success and the last great accomplishment of the British nation in addition to the fiction that the period directly after the war being an idyllic period of peace. This is not to say though, that media representations of the war have slowed or stopped in the recent years. The popular aforementioned series Dad’s Army, was made into a feature film in February 2016. This movie was not a success, at least in the minds of critics, for the simple fact that it showcased nothing