History- World War I - Essay Example

The Aftermath of WWI on the Society World War I was a remarkable event that left an unforgettable mark in the history of mankind. Erupted initially in Europe, it grew huge to drag many countries into the battlefield. Within the period covering the years from 1914 to 1918, a very short period at that, the event recorded a devastation based on the millions of lives lost, the trillions of finances wasted, and diplomatic relations marred. What was further saddening was that the war’s trauma was equally devastating not only in the physical structure of the world but also the society and its players – the people.

From the many quantifiable losses of WWI we consider further some of the major impacts of the war as far as the civilian populace is concerned. First, the war created a major social and moral blow upon the society resulting to social disorders (Bourne, “Total War,” par. 62). Most of the European states involved in the war like Russia, Germany, and Italy experience social chaos. Political leaders are finding reasons for their failures and created oppositions from various sectors. The weak governments that were created after the war invited new ideologies to come out.

The leaders and the populace are looking for identity which leads to the rise of ideologists that created totalitarian regimes in their desperate moves to control society and return the country to order. The rise of Mussolini, Hitler, and Stalin are proof to this argument. The effects could have lasted if not for the eruption of another war as the consequence and the end to major autocratic regimes. The wars that erupted changed the perspective of the people against the use of power to resolve conflict and this effect lasted until now where the general public favors diplomatic resolutions against violence.

These facilitated the birth of International Peace Organizations like the League of Nations, predecessor of the United Nations in the worlds attempt to control global order (Townshend, “The League of Nations.” Par. 1)The emotional trauma was equally important aftermath of WWI. This trauma is brought by deaths of fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, relatives and friends. However, the effects vanished or reduced in intensity as years passed as new generations replaced those who were directly involved in the war.

But war memorials, which still stand until this time, served as reminders to mankind of the consequence of his actions.In the economic side, some countries gained while others losses. Much of Europe became economically burdened due to the cost of war including the major players Britain, Germany, Italy, and France. Germany was made to pay the cost of the war being charged responsible for the aggressions. France suffered a lot of devastations because the war was mostly fought in their soils and rebuilding the economy entailed so much cost.

England became heavily indebted to United States and other countries as a major player and financer in the war. In most areas people suffered because of the lack of jobs and social unrest. In Britain a collapse in the domestic service sector was felt. However, the war opened the opportunity for women to be a greater part of the society by giving them as much right for public services and employment. The war favored much the United States who gained the limelight of economic development due to the loss of Britain’s economic power.

The civilian people of the US benefit the demand for more jobs and the gaining economy which effects lasted until the present. The economic problems of other states were even carried over until the next world war, but Britain recovered sooner.The moral and social impacts of World War I had set the stage for another huge war fought by the remnants. While the perspective of the general populace as far as war is concerned changed a lot after the two wars and lasted until the present, the economic impact had been addressed by the present societies which made European nations among the top performing economies of the world.

There were wars that followed but lessons had been learned from WWI and controls had been set so that it would never happen again.Literature CitedBourne, John. “Total War I: The Great War" The Oxford Illustrated History of Modern War. Ed. Charles Townshend. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1997 September 13, 2008 Townshend, Charles. “The League of Nations and the United Nations.” World Wars: World War One. March 4, 2003, BBC. September 13, 2008 < http://www.bbc.co.uk/>