An anti-war religious allegory, this narrative follows Carl's first and last day of combat in World War I. While he can be inferred as German, his nationality is secondary. Carl embodies the Everyman and a Christ figure, with his name meaning 'man' in Old Norse. The story unfolds in four chapters named after stages of the Passion: 'Gethsemane,' 'Golgotha,' 'Sepulture,' and 'Resurrection.' In the first chapter, he participates in a dawn advance on 'Hill 50,' suffers multiple vivid wounds, and loses consciousness in the enemy's trench. The second chapter depicts him mistakenly taken for dead to a rendering plant, where soldiers' remains are processed into various products. He awakens and narrowly escapes. In the third section, wandering the moor, his mind unravels, leading him to dig his own grave and lie down in it. The final chapter features two generals who encounter him, listen to his visionary ramblings, and ultimately execute him as a subversive threat, returning him to his grave. The author's graphic depictions of battlefield horrors and the rendering plant challenge the limits of taste for the time. His powerful, yet often ornate prose enhances the impact of the story, which merges the supernatural with military themes. A prefatory note reveals the story's origins in 1917, during opiate-induced visions, making it significant for those interested in automatic writing and drug-influenced literature.
Walter Owen Bücher
