The Guilt of an Officer Whose Men Died in His Care

 

E.A. Mackintosh


Stanzas 3-5 of "In Memoriam, Private D. Sutherland, killed in action in the German trench 16 May 1916, and the others who died," by E.A. Mackintosh

You were only David's father,

But I had fifty sons

When we went up in the evening

Under the arch of the guns,

And we came back at twilight-

O God! I heard them call

To me for help and pity

That could not help at all.


Oh, never will I forget you,

My men that trusted me,

More my sons than your fathers',

For they could only see

The little helpless babies

And the young men in their pride.

They could not see you dying,

And hold you when you died.


Happy and young and gallant,

They saw their first-born go,

But not the strong limbs broken

And the beautiful men brought low,

The piteous writhing bodies,

They screamed 'Don't leave me, sir"

For they were only your fathers

But I was your officer.


What struck me most about this poem is the immense guilt evident throughout. The history behind the poem brought into focus the reasons E.A. Mackintosh carried guilt over the death of Private David Sutherland. In 1916, Mackintosh was leading a trench raid near Arras. Two of Mackintosh’s men were killed during the raid – Private David Sutherland was one of them. Sutherland lost several limbs during the raid. Mackintosh was attempting to bring Sutherland back to the trenches when Sutherland died of his wounds and had to be left behind. As Mackintosh stated in the poem, “the Bosches” – a term for German soldiers – “have got [Sutherland’s] body,” and there is no known burial place for Sutherland.

David Sutherland is commemorated in the Arras memorial.

            In the poem, Mackintosh is addressing Sutherland’s father. In the third stanza Mackintosh writes “You were only David’s father.” The word “only” catches the eye because it seems that Mackintosh is downplaying the importance of Sutherland’s father. The following line says “But I had fifty sons.” This line clearly shows that Mackintosh felt extremely responsible as the officer of these men and is comparing himself to their fathers. Mackintosh’s guilt over their deaths is painfully evident throughout the poem as he says “I heard them call / To me for help and pity / That could not help at all.” Mackintosh believes that he has failed his “sons” because he could not save them. Mackintosh was nicknamed “Tosh” by his troops and was essentially a father to them.

            In the fourth stanza there is a clear shift in who Mackintosh is addressing. The stanza starts with the lines “Oh, never will I forget you, / My men that trusted me.” While in the beginning of the poem, Mackintosh was addressing David Sutherland’s father, he is now directly addressing his own men.

            Though Mackintosh seems to believe he failed his men, he still says that his men were “more [his] sons than [their] fathers’.” This is a bold assertion for Mackintosh to make, but he attempts to prove his point when he addresses his dead soldiers and says “[your parents] could not see you dying, / And hold you while you died.” When I read these lines, their effect was jarring. The lines show the close proximity that this officer had to his soldiers as they died, but it also shows the duty he feels to be with his soldiers in their last moments when their own fathers cannot.

            Mackintosh describes his mens’ deaths in detail in the poem. He uses phrases such as “strong limbs broken,” and “piteous writhing bodies.” These images Mackintosh evokes show that he is haunted by the sight of his dying men. The reason he still feels haunted by their deaths can be found in the last line when he says “they were only your fathers / But I was your officer.” It is a father’s job to protect his children, but Mackintosh is saying that his job as an officer goes beyond that. An officer is meant to lead his men, protect them, and stay beside them in their last moments. Mackintosh was unable to save David Sutherland, and this poem is a depiction of the responsibility and guilt an officer feels over his lost men.

 

For more information on E.A. Mackintosh: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ewart_Alan_Mackintosh

http://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poet/e-alan-mackintosh/

 

Comments

  1. Sydney NelsonOctober 5, 2020 at 11:33 AM

    I loved this poem, actually, it was in the running to be my blog post as well. I'm glad someone did it. I didn't even think to look into who Sutherland was, but the tragedy of his death does make the piece much more poignant. I think the fact that he was a real person is really heartbreaking in a way that talking about a random soldier isn't. That idea leads back to the Stalin quote that comes up in class all the time.

    I was likewise shocked by the "only" in the poem. I wonder if that upset parents or if they understood and even agreed with Mackintosh?

    The other thing that stood out to me, and I don't think was intentional on the author's part, is the name David. David is a biblical character, and a well known one at that. He famously fought the giant Goliath and one. I wrote in my book "anyone with a dead son could read this and imagine their child going off to kill giants." Obviously, Mackintosh chose David because that was the dead man's name, but it is an interesting coincidence that makes the poem more universal.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Danielle ConnorsOctober 5, 2020 at 11:57 AM

      After doing the research on who David Sutherland was, I could only imagine the specific details of what happened to him. I did the research on Sutherland immediately after reading the poem because I was interested by the individuality expressed in the poem. Like you pointed out, Mackintosh is not mourning a thousand deaths, he's just mourning one man whose father now weeps over his death. I completely agree that somehow this individuality makes the poem even more heartbreaking.
      Because of the "In Memorium," in the title of the poem, it never occurred to me to think about the meaning of the name David. I was so interested when you said this, because though like you said Mackintosh most likely didn't make this biblical connection because David Sutherland is a real person, looking at the poem through this biblical perspective is so interesting. Everyone (especially in wartime) would want to believe that their child would miraculously have the strength to beat a giant like David in the Bible.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Nurse Who Watches Over Dreaming Soldiers in "Night Duty"

Image
Eva Dobell Stanzas 1-3 of "Night Duty" by Eva Dobell The pain and laughter of the day are done So strangely hushed and still the long ward seems, Only the Sister’s candle softly beams. Clear from the church near by the clock strikes ’one’; And all are wrapt away in secret sleep and dreams. Here one cries sudden on a sobbing breath, Gripped in the clutch of some incarnate fear: What terror through the darkness draweth near? What memory of carnage and of death? What vanished scenes of dread to his closed eyes appear? And one laughs out with an exultant joy. An athlete he — Maybe his young limbs strain In some remembered game, and not in vain To win his side the goal — Poor crippled boy, Who in the waking world will never run again. Eva Dobell was born in 1876 and was the daughter of a wine merchant. Dobell joined the   Voluntary Aid Detachment   (V.A.D.) as a nurse. Women who volunteered as nurses with the Voluntary Aid Detachment served wounded and sick soldiers in both field ...
Read more

In "An Incident," Mary Tends to a Helpless Christ

Image
  Depiction of Mary and Christ An Incident by H.J. Henderson He was just a boy, as I could see, For he sat in the tent there close by me. I held the lamp with its flickering light, And felt the hot tears blur my sight As the doctor took the blood-stained hands From both his brave, shell-shattered hands-- His boy hands, wounded more pitifully Than Thine O Christ, on Calvary. I was making tea in the tent where they, The wounded, came in their agony; And the boy turned when his wounds were dressed, Held up his face like a child at the breast, Turned and held his tired face up, For he could not hold the spoon or cup, And I fed him. . . . Mary, Mother of God, All women tread where thy feet have trod. And still on the battlefield of pain Christ is stretched on His Cross again; And the Son of God in agony hangs, Womanhood striving to ease His pangs. For each son of man is a son divine, Not just to the mother who calls him 'mine', As he stretches out his stricken hand, Wounded to death...
Read more

Edgell Rickword is Envious of the Dead in "Moonrise Over Battlefield"

Image
                Edgell Rickword                  Moonrise Over Battlefield by Edgell Rickword After the fallen sun the wind was sad  like violins behind immense old walls.  Trees were musicians swaying round the bed  of a woman m gloomy halls.  In privacy of music she made ready  with comb and silver dust and fard;  under her silken vest her little belly  shone like a bladder of sweet lard.  She drifted with the grand air of a punk on Heaven's streets soliciting white saints; then lay in bright communion on a cloud-bank as one who near extreme of pleasure faints.   Then I thought, standing in the ruined trench, (all around, dead Boche white-shirted lay like sheep), 'Why does this damned entrancing bitch seek lovers only among them that sleep?                     When I first read...
Read more