Now It Can Be Told · Chapter
XVI explained
A portrait of General Haldane, his intellect, intensity, and complex character, including his interactions with war correspondents, his ruthless yet risk-taking command style, and a tender moment with children during the German offensive of
What happens
A portrait of General Haldane, his intellect, intensity, and complex character, including his interactions with war correspondents, his ruthless yet risk-taking command style, and a tender moment with children during the German offensive of 1918.
Themes in this chapter
Betrayal by Leadership
General Haldane's rage against inefficiency in high places and restrictions on his command reflects a sense of betrayal by leadership.
Comradeship and Human Spirit
The general's kindness to children during the war, drawing a map in the dust and reassuring them, shows the human spirit amid conflict.
Psychological Trauma
The death of young Congreve and the senseless loss of a million boys highlights the psychological toll of war.
Characters to notice
- General Haldane
Described as having intellect and 'quality', with a slow-burning fire, hatred of the enemy, and rage against inefficiency. He was ruthless, aloof, yet gracious to visitors and sympathetic to ideas outside the old caste.
- Unknown Narrator
The war correspondent who reflects on General Haldane's character and recounts personal observations.
- Young Paul Bensher
Mentioned as 'young Congreve', the A.D.C. whose death deeply saddened General Haldane.
Key passages
“General Haldane was friendly to the war correspondents—he had been something of the kind himself in earlier days—and we were welcomed at his headquarters, both when he commanded the 3rd Division and afterward when he became commander of the 6th Corps.”
General Haldane, having once been a war correspondent himself, was welcoming to the press at his headquarters during his commands of the 3rd Division and later the 6th Corps.
Establishes Haldane's background and rapport with correspondents.
“A bit of shell, a senseless bit of steel, spoiled that promise—as it spoiled the promise of a million boys—and the general was saddened more than by the death of other gallant officers.”
A random piece of shrapnel ended the promising life of young Congreve, just as it ended the hopes of countless other young soldiers, and this loss affected Haldane more deeply than other deaths.
Highlights the theme of loss of innocence and the randomness of death in war.
“He drew a map for them in the dust of the roadway, and showed them where the enemy was attacking and the general strategy. He spoke simply and gravely, as though to a group of staff-officers, and the children followed his diagram in the dust and understood him perfectly.”
Using a stick, Haldane sketched a map in the dirt road, explaining the enemy's movements and battle plans to a group of children with the same seriousness he would use with his staff, and the children grasped his explanation.
Illustrates Haldane's unexpected tenderness and ability to connect with civilians.