Modernism, History and the First World War (review)

Tate, Trudi. Modernism, History and the First World War. Manchester University Press, 1998. Cloth $29.95

On March 25th, 1999, Ted Koppel opened Nightline‘s coverage of the second day of the “Crisis in Kosovo” with the disclaimer: “We are reporting on a war that we cannot see.” The Yugoslavian government had detained or deported all foreign correspondents. What would be seen had been regulated by the machinations of unseen agencies. As with the Persian Gulf War, the American populace would “witness” their involvement in a NATO-sanctioned action from the further dislocated position of their couches. For the unconcerned, political disinterest lay a remote control away. For the technologically-minded, analysts would explain the tonnage of the bombs and the capabilities of the Tomahawk missiles. For the politically-minded, Koppel would lead discussions about the veracity of and the motivations behind the images of war disseminated by Belgrade. In each case, the immediacy and direct trauma of war is lost to the remoteness of the foreign civilian. The State Department and the mass media imply, over and over again, that the American people only want to hear the bottom line. What were the hit-to-miss ratios? How much will this cost? When can we go back to our normal lives? Did we look good?