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On the home fronts, the
morale and consciousness of Australian and European societies were greatly affected by the
war. The First World War was a tragic and traumatic experience. In some European cities,
there was documented a high suicide rate among returning soldiers, who after living
through the horrors of the war, found it impossible to find their place in society again. The war also prompted new intellectual discussion and debate. Many questioned the rationality of a war that had not lived up to their initial romanticised notions. Before the war, technology, industry and science were seen as vehicles for the advancement of progress and civilisation. It was thought that technological warfare would result in a quicker and more efficient war, rather than a war that was more destructive. By the end of the war, society's conceptions of technology and progress had changed dramatically, and there was a sense of bitter disillusionment. Despite the positive developments of some wartime technology such as better communication systems and increased industrial efficiency, weapons technology had also killed hundreds of thousands of Australian men. With the end of the war, the reality of national economic burdens and debts from the war effort was felt during and long after 1918 in Australia. |
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