'Cooee': The Theme of Distance in Australian Recruitment Posters during World War I

Abstract

<p>During World War I, approximately 416 000 men enlisted as soldiers in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF). They formed roughly 13.4 per cent of the white male population, or about half of the eligible number of recruits believed to be available.<sup style = "color:blue">1</sup> They came from small country towns and the burgeoning Australian cities, from large families where brothers fought side by side, and from small families where mothers would send one son off to fight, while the other stayed at home to work and support the family.<sup style = "color:blue">2</sup> Of those who enlisted, approximately 330 000 were sent overseas.<sup style = "color:blue">3</sup> The vast bulk of those who served abroad, some 290 000 people,<sup style = "color:blue">4</sup> saw service on the Western Front in Europe, where about 45 000 Australian soldiers lost their lives. While there was conflict in the Pacific and fears of the 'enemy within', which, to some extent, made the conflict feel close, most Australian soldiers were based in those European and Near Eastern theatres of war that were thousands of kilometres from their homes. Consciousness of that distance between Australia and Europe, already felt by Australians before the war,<sup style = "color:blue">5</sup> was heightened during wartime by factors such as the absence of a large portion of the population, who were serving abroad, and by the enhanced anxiety felt during the long periods of silence between receiving wartime correspondence. As this chapter shows, consciousness of this distance was also used in Australian recruitment material throughout the war in an effort to appeal to prospective recruits.</p>