''Memoirs of an Infantry Officer'' is a novel by Siegfried Sassoon, first published in 1930. It is a fictionalised account of Sassoon's own life during and immediately after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Soon after its release, it was heralded as a classic and was even more successful than its predecessor, ''

Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man ''Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man'' is a novel by Siegfried Sassoon, first published in 1928 by Faber and Faber. It won both the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, being immediately recognised as a classic of English litera ...

''.

Synopsis

Sassoon's account of his experiences in the trenches during World War I, between the spring of 1916 and the summer of 1917, creates a picture of a physically brave but self-effacing and highly insecure individual. The

narrative A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, whether nonfictional (memoir, biography, news report, documentary, travelogue, etc.) or fictional ( fairy tale, fable, legend, thriller, novel, etc. ...

moves from the

trenches A trench is a type of excavation or in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a wider gully, or ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole or pit). In geology, trenches result from erosi ...

to the Fourth Army School, to

Morlancourt Morlancourt () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Morlancourt is situated on the D42 road, some northeast of Amiens. Population Notable people * Louis Friant (1758–1829), French military ...

and a raid, then to and through

the Somme The Battle of the Somme (French language, French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. I ...

. The

narrator Narration is the use of a written or spoken commentary to convey a story to an audience. Narration is conveyed by a narrator: a specific person, or unspecified literary voice, developed by the creator of the story to deliver information to the ...

, George Sherston, is wounded when a piece of shrapnel shell passes through his lung after he incautiously sticks his head over the

parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an extension of the wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/breast'). ...

at the Battle of Arras in 1917. He is sent home to convalesce and, while there, arranges to have lunch with the Editor of an anti-war newspaper, the ''Unconservative Weekly''. He determines to speak out against the war, though this contravenes military regulations and could result in his execution. The book finishes as George Sherston prepares to attend 'Slateford War Hospital' ( Craiglockhart War Hospital in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

) after a medical board had decided he was suffering from

shell shock Shell shock is a term coined in World War I by the British psychologist Charles Samuel Myers to describe the type of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) many soldiers were afflicted with during the war (before PTSD was termed). It is a react ...

. The book portrays Sherston's emotional and intellectual coming of age, as he learns "that he is but one insignificant person caught up in events beyond anyone's comprehension".

Reviews

"A book of deep beauty and abiding significance. A book which will, I hope and believe, be read by millions". – Harold Nicolson "Those who in future really want to understand the atmosphere of the years 1916 and 1917, and the conditions of life, will turn back to this book". – ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

Influence

In 1981 Paul Hogarth produced illustrations for the book, which were the subject of an exhibition at the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

during 2014.Memoirs of an Infantry Officer: Paul Hogarth Illustrates Siegfried Sassoon (WWI)
. Accessed 2 April 2015

Notes

Sassoon presented his own experiences in novelistic form, and therefore opted to use pseudonyms in place of names in his "George Sherston" trilogy (George Sherston being Sassoon's alter ego). Other notable characters in the book include Sassoon's contemporary Robert Graves, who appears in the book as 'David Cromlech', and 'Dick Tiltwood' (Sassoon's pseudonym for the Welsh soldier

David Cuthbert Thomas Second Lieutenant David Cuthbert Thomas (1895 – 18 March 1916) was a Welsh soldier of the British Army who served during the First World War. He is best known for his association with the poet Siegfried Sassoon, who after his death became th ...

). Both men convalesced at Somerville College, Oxford during the war.

References

External links

*
A review of the novel
originally archive

{{DEFAULTSORT:Memoirs of an Infantry Officer 1930 British novels Books by Siegfried Sassoon British autobiographical novels British memoirs Faber and Faber books Roman à clef novels Novels set during World War I