Some historians have the idea that literature is of no value to them, because it is ‘not real’. I wholeheartedly disagree. It is real, it is just another kind of reality, a reality not of fact but of insight. And this goes not only for literature written in the times of the historical event itself, but also on modern literature, looking back upon days long past. When we are talking about medicine and World War I one of the first names coming into mind is of course Pat Baker. After, with The Ghost Road, she said goodbye to the Regeneration-trilogy about ten years ago, she has returned to 1914-1918 and medical care with her book Life Class. But this immediately is just about the only similarity with the trilogy. This time no psychiatry and no base hospital for upper class officers somewhere in Scotland, but the blood, the sweat and the tears of clearing stations near the Belgian front, including the death of doctors and nurses. Also this time no leading role for historical figures such as Owen or Sassoon. The two historical figures the story introduces – painter and doctor Henry Tonks and pacifist and feminist Ottoline Morell – only play a minor role.
One of the nurses listens to the name Paul Tarrant. Before the war he was part of Tonks’ painting class, making him paint for instance female nudes in the ‘life class’. With one of the models, Teresa, he starts an affair, but his one true love is his colleague in arts, the highly talented student Elinor. When Teresa leaves him to return to her husband – in spite of the fact she had left him because of his violent aggressiveness – soon Paul and Elinor come together. This leads to lots of sadness and anger in Kit, a painter of good fortune in contrast to Paul, who had proposed to Elinor in vain.

 out of  found this valuable. Do you find this valuable?    

Show Last Reply