The War Prayer
Encyclopedia
"The War Prayer," a short story or prose poem by Mark Twain
, is a scathing indictment of war, and particularly of blind patriotic
and religious
fervor as motivations for war.
The structure of the work is simple, but effective: An unnamed country goes to war, and patriotic citizens attend a church service for soldiers who have been called up. The people call upon their God
to grant them victory and protect their troops. Suddenly, an "aged stranger" appears and announces that he is God's messenger. He explains to them that he is there to speak aloud the second part of their prayer for victory, the part which they have implicitly wished for but have not spoken aloud themselves: the prayer for the suffering and destruction of their enemies. What follows is a grisly depiction of hardships inflicted on war-torn nations by their conquerors. The story ends pessimistically with the man, perhaps not surprisingly, being ignored.
The piece was left unpublished by Mark Twain at his death in April of 1910, largely due to pressure from his family, who feared that the story would be considered sacrilegious. Twain's publisher and other friends also discouraged him from publishing it. According to one account, his illustrator Dan Beard
asked him if he would publish it anyway, and Twain replied, "No, I have told the whole truth in that, and only dead men can tell the truth in this world. It can be published after I am dead." Mindful of public reaction, he considered that he had a family to support and did not want to be seen as a lunatic or fanatic.
Twain's "The War Prayer" was finally published -- and probably none to soon -- some six years after his death, in the November 1916 issue of what was then called Harper's Monthly
. By then, World War I
had been raging for a little over two years, amassing unprecedented casualties on both sides. The U.S., however, remained proudly neutral, as reflected in President Woodrow Wilson
's re-election campaign slogan that year: He Kept Us Out of War. However, beginning with its earlier sinking of the British RMS Lusitania
in 1915, with 128 Americans on board, Germany seemed determined to turn the tide of U.S. disinterest in entering the war; and while the public outrage over the Lusitania's sinking led, at first, to Germany's accession to Wilson's demands that it stop attacks on non-military ships, the "Central Powers
" member nation had again stepped-up its aggressive submarine activity by January of 1917, just two months after Twain's piece was first published.
Even before The War Prayer's publication, Germany was suspected of sabotage in the 1916 Black Tom Explosion
in Jersey City, New Jersey
, and the earlier 1914 Kingsland Explosion
in Lyndhurst, New Jersey
; then, after The War Prayer's publication, German U-boats sunk more than a half dozen U.S. merchant ships. During that period, also, the infamous Zimmermann Telegram
was intercepted, then finally leaked and published on March 1, 1917; in which telegram Germany pledged to help Mexico win back Texas, New Mexico and Arizona (which Mexico had lost to the U.S. some 70 years earlier in the Mexican-American War) if Mexico would join World War I as Germany's ally. Consequently, on April 6, 1917, just five months after Twain's The War Prayer was posthumously published, and with the tide of U.S. disinterest in entering the war having by then completely turned, President Wilson called for war on Germany, and Congress
agreed and declared it, thereby officially entering the U.S. into World War I.
The timing of The War Prayer's publication was none too soon, then, because though few in the then-non-interventionist United States found it unpatriotic when it was first published, many would likely have found it so if it had been published as early as two months later when Germany broke its submarine attack promises; and most would likely have found it unpatriotic if it had been published just five months after it actually was, when the U.S. finally entered World War I in April of 1917.
Exactly 90 years later, in April 2007, a ten-minute, short film adaptation, entitled "The War Prayer," was released by Lyceum Films. Written by Marco Sanchez
, and directed by Michael Goorjian
, the adaptation starred Jeremy Sisto
as "The Stranger," and Tim Sullivan
as "The Preacher".
That same year, journalist and Washington Monthly president Markos Kounalakis
directed and produced an animated short film based on Twain's piece, also entitled "The War Prayer." Narrated by Peter Coyote
, it featured Lawrence Ferlinghetti
as the Minister, and Eric Bauersfeld as the Stranger.
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
, is a scathing indictment of war, and particularly of blind patriotic
Patriotism
Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
and religious
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
fervor as motivations for war.
The structure of the work is simple, but effective: An unnamed country goes to war, and patriotic citizens attend a church service for soldiers who have been called up. The people call upon their God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
to grant them victory and protect their troops. Suddenly, an "aged stranger" appears and announces that he is God's messenger. He explains to them that he is there to speak aloud the second part of their prayer for victory, the part which they have implicitly wished for but have not spoken aloud themselves: the prayer for the suffering and destruction of their enemies. What follows is a grisly depiction of hardships inflicted on war-torn nations by their conquerors. The story ends pessimistically with the man, perhaps not surprisingly, being ignored.
The piece was left unpublished by Mark Twain at his death in April of 1910, largely due to pressure from his family, who feared that the story would be considered sacrilegious. Twain's publisher and other friends also discouraged him from publishing it. According to one account, his illustrator Dan Beard
Daniel Carter Beard
Daniel Carter "Uncle Dan" Beard was an American illustrator, author, youth leader, and social reformer who founded the Sons of Daniel Boone in 1905, which Beard later merged with the Boy Scouts of America .-Early life:...
asked him if he would publish it anyway, and Twain replied, "No, I have told the whole truth in that, and only dead men can tell the truth in this world. It can be published after I am dead." Mindful of public reaction, he considered that he had a family to support and did not want to be seen as a lunatic or fanatic.
Twain's "The War Prayer" was finally published -- and probably none to soon -- some six years after his death, in the November 1916 issue of what was then called Harper's Monthly
Harper's Magazine
Harper's Magazine is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts, with a generally left-wing perspective. It is the second-oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the U.S. . The current editor is Ellen Rosenbush, who replaced Roger Hodge in January 2010...
. By then, World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
had been raging for a little over two years, amassing unprecedented casualties on both sides. The U.S., however, remained proudly neutral, as reflected in President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
's re-election campaign slogan that year: He Kept Us Out of War. However, beginning with its earlier sinking of the British RMS Lusitania
RMS Lusitania
RMS Lusitania was a British ocean liner designed by Leonard Peskett and built by John Brown and Company of Clydebank, Scotland. The ship entered passenger service with the Cunard Line on 26 August 1907 and continued on the line's heavily-traveled passenger service between Liverpool, England and New...
in 1915, with 128 Americans on board, Germany seemed determined to turn the tide of U.S. disinterest in entering the war; and while the public outrage over the Lusitania's sinking led, at first, to Germany's accession to Wilson's demands that it stop attacks on non-military ships, the "Central Powers
Central Powers
The Central Powers were one of the two warring factions in World War I , composed of the German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulgaria...
" member nation had again stepped-up its aggressive submarine activity by January of 1917, just two months after Twain's piece was first published.
Even before The War Prayer's publication, Germany was suspected of sabotage in the 1916 Black Tom Explosion
Black Tom explosion
The Black Tom explosion on July 30, 1916 in Jersey City, New Jersey was an act of sabotage on American ammunition supplies by German agents to prevent the materiel from being used by the Allies in World War I.- Black Tom Island :...
in Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City is the seat of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.Part of the New York metropolitan area, Jersey City lies between the Hudson River and Upper New York Bay across from Lower Manhattan and the Hackensack River and Newark Bay...
, and the earlier 1914 Kingsland Explosion
Kingsland Explosion
The Kingsland Explosion was an incident that took place during World War I at a munitions factory in Lyndhurst, New Jersey.Soon after its outbreak in 1914 World War I settled in the West into an almost static line of trenches with the principal Allied armies facing the forces of Germany and...
in Lyndhurst, New Jersey
Lyndhurst, New Jersey
Lyndhurst is a township in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 20,554.Lyndhurst was originally formed as Union Township on February 19, 1852 from portions of Harrison Township...
; then, after The War Prayer's publication, German U-boats sunk more than a half dozen U.S. merchant ships. During that period, also, the infamous Zimmermann Telegram
Zimmermann Telegram
The Zimmermann Telegram was a 1917 diplomatic proposal from the German Empire to Mexico to make war against the United States. The proposal was caught by the British before it could get to Mexico. The revelation angered the Americans and led in part to a U.S...
was intercepted, then finally leaked and published on March 1, 1917; in which telegram Germany pledged to help Mexico win back Texas, New Mexico and Arizona (which Mexico had lost to the U.S. some 70 years earlier in the Mexican-American War) if Mexico would join World War I as Germany's ally. Consequently, on April 6, 1917, just five months after Twain's The War Prayer was posthumously published, and with the tide of U.S. disinterest in entering the war having by then completely turned, President Wilson called for war on Germany, and Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
agreed and declared it, thereby officially entering the U.S. into World War I.
The timing of The War Prayer's publication was none too soon, then, because though few in the then-non-interventionist United States found it unpatriotic when it was first published, many would likely have found it so if it had been published as early as two months later when Germany broke its submarine attack promises; and most would likely have found it unpatriotic if it had been published just five months after it actually was, when the U.S. finally entered World War I in April of 1917.
Exactly 90 years later, in April 2007, a ten-minute, short film adaptation, entitled "The War Prayer," was released by Lyceum Films. Written by Marco Sanchez
Marco Sanchez
-Life and career:The son of Cuban immigrants, and the youngest of 4 siblings, Marco Sanchez was raised in Palm Desert, California. Having studied theater throughout junior high and high school, he entered the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television in 1988. In the summer of 1989, he studied...
, and directed by Michael Goorjian
Michael A. Goorjian
Michael Antranig Goorjian is an American actor and filmmaker.-Early life:Goorjian was born and raised in Oakland, California. He has been singing, acting, directing, and choreographing since he was in junior high school...
, the adaptation starred Jeremy Sisto
Jeremy Sisto
Jeremy Merton Sisto is an American actor. Sisto has had recurring roles as Billy Chenowith on the HBO series Six Feet Under and Detective Cyrus Lupo on Law & Order on television and also starred in the films Jesus, Clueless and Thirteen.-Early life:Sisto was born in Grass Valley, California, the...
as "The Stranger," and Tim Sullivan
Tim Sullivan (director)
Tim Sullivan is an American film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter.-Early career:His interest in film began as a teenager when he landed a job as a production assistant on the 1983 cult horror film Return of the Aliens: The Deadly Spawn...
as "The Preacher".
That same year, journalist and Washington Monthly president Markos Kounalakis
Markos Kounalakis
Markos Kounalakis is a Greek-American journalist and author. Kounalakis is the president and publisher emeritus of the Washington Monthly, a magazine founded by Charles Peters in 1969. Kounalakis co-anchors the nationally syndicated weekly political program, Washington Monthly on the Radio...
directed and produced an animated short film based on Twain's piece, also entitled "The War Prayer." Narrated by Peter Coyote
Peter Coyote
Peter Coyote is an American actor, author, director, screenwriter and narrator of films, theatre, television and audio books. His voice work includes narrating the opening ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympics and Apple's iPad campaign. He has also served as on-camera co-host of the 2000 Oscar...
, it featured Lawrence Ferlinghetti
Lawrence Ferlinghetti
Lawrence Ferlinghetti is an American poet, painter, liberal activist, and the co-founder of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers...
as the Minister, and Eric Bauersfeld as the Stranger.
External links
- Full text on the War Prayer (.org) web site
- Full text on the Sacred Texts web site
- Full text on Wikisource
- November 1916 Harper's Monthly reference in Wikisource
- One act adaptation for the stage by Gerald P. Murphy
- Five-minute Reader's Theater Edition adaptation by Aaron Shepard
- The entire 2007 film adaptation on the Lyceum Films web site
- The entire 2007 animated short, in two parts, on YouTube
- The 96 page book published by Harper Collins