Chapters 16 - 18 Summary and Analysis

Beyond Chapter 15's Horizon, Chapter 16, "Reading in Wartime", examines the typical civilian and soldier experience of reading during World War II. The primary sources of information to soldiers were official military publications. These focused on wartime efforts and presented the war as a meaningful, high-minded, event. Combat depictions were homogenized and sanitized, leaving most frontline soldiers confused about 'which' war was being reported in the journals. Most wartime media, novels, and poetry adapted the same voice and viewpoint as the official media. Because of this, most civilians and soldiers read the same type of thing, over and over. One safe route of escape lay in reading older books, produced before the war, when difference of opinion was not so frowned upon. Reprints of classics gained considerable popularity. The wartime reading experience also revolved around restricted use of rationed products...