Can a story about soldiers shaking hands in the snow carry a warning for the nuclear age?

This episode of Oh What a Lovely Podcast brings Jessica, Chris and Angus together with Anne Marie Einhaus for a conversation about Robert Graves short story Christmas Truce. The story appears in the Penguin Book of First World War Stories and follows an elderly veteran who recalls the rare moments in 1914 and 1915 when soldiers on both sides met peacefully in the frozen landscape between the trenches.

Through these memories the veteran describes friendship that cuts through wartime propaganda, as well as the swift return of violence. Set against a discussion with his grandson in the early 1960s, the story contrasts youthful optimism in the anti nuclear movement with the weary caution of lived experience. It is a thoughtful look at the limits of goodwill and the forces that shape conflict.

References: Graves, R. (2007) 'Christmas Truce', in Ein­haus, A-M. (ed.) The Penguin Book of First World War Stories. London: Penguin Classics Keynes, G. (1962) A Bibliography of Siegfried Sassoon. London: R. Hart-Davis. Levy, D. (dir.) (1995) Silent Night (Stille Nacht)