Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

When was World War I fought? Who were the warring powers? What were some of the effects of WWI on societies, particularly those in European countries?

Teaching Suggestion: WWI, also referred to as the Great War, was the first war in which countries fought on a global scale. Between 1914 and 1918, the Allied Powers (France, Italy, Russia, the UK, and the US, among others), fought the Central Powers (Austria-Hungary, Germany, and the Ottoman Empire, among others) in a series of battles and movements that involved trench warfare on the European continent, along with battles in Asia and Africa. The effects of WWI on the world were tremendous; in Europe, countries experienced political, economic, and social upheaval, including the rise of fascist ideology and leadership, the spread of communism, and the economic collapse and devaluation of currencies, such as in Germany’s Weimar Republic. With this postwar lens, literary movements like the Bloomsbury group explored ideas in their writings such as Class Distinction and Class Consciousness and The Relationship Between Life and Death.