Testament of Youth

Though the war is over, the “thoroughly nasty Peace” (428) of 1919 brings Brittain little comfort. She is disturbed by the vengefulness of her countrymen who seek retribution from Germany; worse, perhaps, is her sense that she will always be alone in the world. When the League of Nations is formed and other peace-related efforts commence, Brittain returns to Oxford and decides to pursue a degree in History rather than English. Her ambitions now circulate around learning more about how the war could have been prevented and if “the means of salvation are already there, implicit in history, unadvertised, carefully concealed by the war-mongers” (431). Brittain’s return to Oxford in the fall of 1919 is cold as no one acknowledges the changes in Brittain due to her experiences during the war; she recognizes, however, that Oxford has allowed her to keep her scholarship and to change her academic program partway through the three year academic program. Brittain tries to acclimate to Oxford anew, but her mental health suffers. When Brittain participates in a debating society discussion at Somerville College, she is humiliated, suffering from the “fundamental antagonism which persists to this day between those who have suffered deeply from the War, and the others who escaped its most violent impacts” (447).