Bernd F. W. Springer publishes new book on Ernst Jünger and the road to becoming a "war hero"
Written in German, the new book by Bernd F. W. Springer, German lecturer at the UAB, is entitled Ernst Jünger und der lange Weg zum 'Kriegshelden'. Kriegstrauma und Kriegstüchtigkeit im Ersten Weltkrieg [Ernst Jünger and the long road to becoming a "war hero". Trauma and wartime adaptation to the First World War] (Vienna: Böhlau, 2024). The book describes the historical, military and mental framework from which people such as Ernst Jünger were able to escape and become famous.
In a critical analysis of the texts of his war diaries and campaign letters, the author traces how Jünger created himself as a war hero with the book Storm of Steel and created his own monument. Discipline and obedience unto death are not innate in human beings. So, what are the prerequisites for young soldiers to put comradeship, glory and honour above their own lives in war? What mental, psychological and emotional adjustments does a war require?
Jünger is only the special case amidst an array of deeper questions: how did someone like him become a “war hero” and why were so many other soldiers traumatised at the same time? What is a war hero? Was he especially brave and the others just cowards? What conclusions can be drawn from the answers to these questions about foot soldiers and their experiences of war, especially with regard to war neuroses? How did Lieutenant Jünger's war experience influence his attitude toward the Weimar Republic? How did other veterans cope with the war and what did this mean for the rise of National Socialism in Germany? These and other questions are answered in Springer's book.