Professor Anna Branach-Kallas of the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, researched the representation of veterans from 100 years ago in Canadian and Australian fiction during her NAWA scholarship at the University of Toronto.
When describing their status, the researcher uses the term “missing person”. In this context, it does not mean a person who disappeared, but rather a lost person, one whose traumatic experiences separate them from the rest of society. Professor Anna Branach-Kallas is the beneficiary of the Bekker Programme.
Veterans never return for good – this truth applies to today’s soldiers returning from their missions just as it did to Canadians and Australians who participated in the battles of the First World War in Europe. This is the conclusion of the NAWA beneficiary’s research.
NAWA: Why did you become interested in this topic as a subject of scientific research?
Professor Anna Branach-Kallas of the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń: I was struck by the parallels in the history of the two nations that, at the outbreak of the conflict, were driven by loyalty to the British Empire. On the other hand, however, the war gave Canadians and Australians the opportunity to prove their maturity and independence from Britain. This friction of imperialist and nationalist discourses is fascinating in both cases. In addition to purely literary and historical research, I found my interest in the philosophy of politics inspiring, too.
How is the fate of the First World War veterans portrayed in Canadian and Australian fiction?
An important theme in contemporary First World War Canadian and Australian fiction is the alienation of First World War veterans from the rest of society. These characters are often maimed by war and in deep suffering due to the physical and psychological trauma that they experienced. Alienation is thus a consequence of trauma, but also of marginalization in a society that wants to forget about the war as quickly as possible and is unable to understand veterans tormented by cruel memories.
How does fiction, depicting veteran characters, reflect the attitudes of Canadian and Australian societies towards their soldiers’ participation in the war?
Both in Australia and in Canada the outbreak of the Great War was greeted with unbounded enthusiasm. Sending as many soldiers as possible to the frontline and other forms of support for the warfare became a point of honour for both nations. It must be borne in mind that in the early years of the war both Canadian and Australian soldiers were volunteers. While conscription was introduced in Canada in 1917, Australia relied on volunteers until the end of the war. 600,000 Canadians and 400,000 Australians took part in the war effort – these were huge numbers compared to the population of these countries. As time went on and it became evident that the war would not come to an end quickly, and the number of casualties was getting more and more alarming, there were attempts at desertion and ideological dissent, covered up by propaganda. Modern writers, on the other hand, view objectors and deserters with great empathy. They show that soldiers enlisted in the army not always out of loyalty to Mother Britain, but also because of the economic crisis or the cult of the warrior, which played an important role in the ideas of masculinity of the time. Also interesting in the works that I have analyzed are the characters of women who find it difficult to maintain a patriotic attitude when they lose their sons, husbands, or lovers. This dissonance between official propaganda and the intimate experience of suffering is movingly portrayed in fiction.
You have also analyzed the policy of the Australian and Canadian governments towards veterans. What was it like? How is it evaluated in fiction?
The research that I conducted shows striking similarities between the policies of the Australian and Canadian governments towards veterans after the First World War. In both cases the soldiers were mythologized as heroes whose attitudes during the battles of Gallipoli (Australians) and Vimy Ridge (Canadians) proved the independence of the country from the Empire. However, while the fallen soldiers were idealized, those who returned from the frontline were offered little understanding or support. The cult of the Australian soldier meant that attitudes towards maimed veterans who were unable to cope with reintegration were more critical in Australia than in Canada. Moreover, a certain evolution can be observed: while in the post-war years the situation of veterans aroused resentment or indifference in societies, in today’s Australia, and especially Canada the physical and psychological suffering of veterans is a theme that appears more frequently in various works. This is connected not only with the centenary of the First World War, but also with a certain ethical turn: the heroization of the suffering of veterans and survivors who had previously received little respect. Again, these phenomena are more pronounced in Canada as the mythologization of traditional models of soldier bravery still matters in Australia. Contemporary writers are critical of Canada’s and Australia’s participation in the first global conflict and the neglect of veterans after the end of the warfare. They depict the dramatic aspect of the homecoming of mutilated and tormented men, who often function in the imagined world as characters that evoke deep sympathy from the reader.
What was the impact of the NAWA scholarship on your development as a scientist?
Implementation of the project “Missing Persons: Trauma, Precarity and First World War Veterans in Australian and Canadian Fiction” under the Bekker Programme of the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange was an academically beneficial experience by all means which, I believe, marked a turning point in my academic career. The three-month scientific search at the University of Toronto was extremely intense and inspiring. I gained access to unique sources as well as identified bibliographies unavailable in Poland and previously unknown to me. In that sense, it was an experience that greatly expanded my research horizons. Consultations with the University of Toronto researchers, to whom I presented the key tenets of the project, and a conference presentation in New York, as well as a guest lecture at the University of Calgary were important and inspiring experiences in my research career. The contacts made in and outside the hospitality centre have resulted in collaboration on further research projects. The findings were published in the prestigious Journal of War and Culture Studies. Two further articles have been accepted for publication in the Journal of New Zealand & Pacific Studies and Studia Anglica Posnaniensia. Moreover, the experience and soft skills acquired at the University of Toronto as regards the organization of studies, fundraising and international cooperation have proved invaluable in my activities as Chair of the Literary Studies Discipline at the Faculty of Humanities at the Nicolaus Copernicus University and as Chair of the Polish Association for Canadian Studies (PACS), responsible for the promotion of Canadian studies in Poland.
If you were to encourage other scientists to take part in the Bekker Programme, what is the greatest value of a NAWA scholarship?
In my opinion, the greatest value of my NAWA fellowship is the unlimited access to scientific materials, cooperation with outstanding experts with global authority as well as the opportunity to observe their work at a prestigious university abroad. This makes it possible to change to a certain extent the research optics and to have a meaningful look at one’s own research skills. Another important aspect of the programme is the possibility for the beneficiaries to be accompanied by their families. NAWA is very supportive of scholarship holders and keeps bureaucracy to a minimum. As I see it, the Bekker Programme is an awesome experience and I am glad I was able to benefit from it.
Thank you for your time.
Professor Anna Branach-Kallas of the NCU, the beneficiary of the Bekker Programme (Photo: private archive of Professor A. Branach-Kallas)
Professor Anna Branach-Kallas of the NCU, is a university professor in the Department of Anglophone Literature, Culture and Comparative Studies at the Institute of Literary Studies of the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. Her research interests include postcolonial literature and theory, war trauma, comparative studies, philosophy of politics, and medical humanities. In 2018 she published, with P. Sadkowski, the monograph Comparing Grief in French, British and Canadian Great War Fiction (1977-2014) (Brill-Rodopi). She is the author of three other monographs, including the book Uraz przetrwania. Trauma i polemika z mitem pierwszej wojny światowej w powieści kanadyjskiej [Survival Trauma. Trauma and Polemic with the Myth of the First World War in the Canadian Novel] (UMK, 2014), which was awarded the Pierre Savard Prize for the best monograph on Canadian studies by the International Council for Canadian Studies. She edited and co-edited a number of collective monographs and journal issues, including an issue of Teksty Drugie on the First World War (4/2018). She has published over 80 chapters and scientific papers in journals such as Journal of War and Culture Studies, Journal of Commonwealth Literature, Journal of Literature and Trauma Studies, Canadian Literature, Studies in 20th and 21st Century Literature, Brno Studies in English, Teksty Drugie. A NAWA and International Council for Canadian Studies scholarship holder, in charge of two projects funded by the National Science Centre (NCN) (OPUS Programme). Since 2019 Chair of the Literary Studies Discipline at the Faculty of Humanities of the NCU, since 2016 Chair of the Polish Association for Canadian Studies (PACS). Wife of a graduate in English Studies, mother of two sons, fan of skating and speed roller skating.
How to receive a NAWA scholarship under the Bekker Programme?
Detailed information about the NAWA programme can be found HERE
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