The lens of retrospect is often foggy when it comes to the public’s perception and acquisition of information surrounding a particular historical event. When reviewing the public’s attitude in Britain around the Great War, a spectrum of opinions can be found regarding the war and it’s memory. On one end of the spectrum, the government and many other institutions advocated the strength of the war effort through the heavy use of propaganda; often this propaganda would twist reality and misconstrue the relative gains or losses incurred during the conflict. On the other hand, artists and many others were timid on the subject and often created visions of war that were careful not to not insult or disrupt the image of the war effort, this too caused a misguided view of the conflict. William Orpen, an Irish artist commissioned by the British Government to paint scenes of the Western Front during WW1, has proven to be one of the few artists and public voices who walked the line between these two poles. I believe his work played a large role in helping the people of Britain understand and process the unprecedented violence and loss caused by the Great War. The work…show more content… Orpen did not shy away from presenting this pastime in his work. Indeed, his works Adam and Eve at Perone (1918) and Good-bye-ee, Cassel (1917) display the aftermath of a domestic visit and daily interactions between provincial French women and uniformed troops. His choice of subject was not flattering to the soldiers- exposing how many of them partook in prostitution. This infuriated many at home who bought into the government’s propagandized fantasy of war where the troops could do no wrong. Despite the vocal opponents, his work provided those with an open mind an accurate window into the lives many soldiers during their time on the Western
