World War 1: Life of Soldiers and Effect on Civilians - Essay Example

The life of the soldiers serving in the frontlines was horrible and to say the least merciless. Death was their everyday companion. Death was all around for those who survived each day. There were random deaths everyday and the death toll was so high that many were left unattended in the trenches while many were buried in huge dugouts. Corpses were left in no man’s land for weeks and months. Bodies could not be identified and were left unburied even when the frontlines progressed. This made it very hard for those still fighting the war.

Death was constantly looming over their heads (Hunt et al., 2010). Majority of the time in the war soldiers spent in the trenches. Life in the trenches was not easy. Trenches were not built in a straight line and most times they would have been built by the enemies. Soldiers could never be sure if the trenches would not take them straight to the enemies. The trenches were never in a straight line and it was not an easy task to commute through the trenches. Trenches were very unhygienic with pests always roaming around in the trenches.

Hygiene was not the primary concerns of the soldiers but it was not easy to live in such inhumane conditions. Soldiers could not was them selves and could not use toilets as that would make them vulnerable to enemy attacks. Hence, some times soldiers had no option but to use wherever they were as toilets. Dysentery became common in the trenches and some time became fatal to many soldiers. There was continuous gunfire round the clock which was very difficult to handle. This would drive many crazy and also loose their minds (Hunt et al., 2010). The weather conditions inside the trenches were intolerable most times.

It was cold and muddy. The atmosphere was always depressing. The temperature would more often than not be below zero during the winter. Exposures to such low temperatures lead to the death of many soldiers. Trench foot and frostbite became common. Trenches would also fill up with the water until the soldier’s waists and this lead to various fungal infections. The unfavorable, unhygienic trench conditions were responsible for various infections. Trenches used to stink as a result of the carcasses that were rotting and latrines that overflowed.

Soldiers would not bath for months adding to the already poor conditions. Rats and pests were a huge problem and made life more miserable for the soldiers. These rats survived on human remains and sometimes grew to the size of the cat. They would also some time feed on the soldiers. These contaminated food and lead to numerous infections. Soldiers had to kill these rats but they could never get rid of them as a rat couple could produce up to 900 off springs a year. Rats remained a problem through out the war.

Apart from rats, frogs and lice were also a big problem for the soldiers. Soldiers did not get much rest and most of them found themselves in the frontline or in the reserves. Food was another major concern for the soldiers. Hot meals were a luxury and there was very little variety. The World War I just did not make an impact on the soldiers at the frontlines but also affected millions of civilians. First and the foremost, civilians became the target of military attacks. Nearly one-third of the total casualties of the war were civilians.

The scale at which the war affected the civilians was unprecedented. Living standards were come down as war lead to poverty and also had an impact on the health. There was food shortages in which almost brought the civilians to starvation. The casualties were so huge that every family lost a member. Women were