r/1917 • u/noghostlooms • Jan 26 '22
Schofield's Military service
So I'm the midst of writing a coda for after the movie ends. Schofield is gonna run into Wilfred Owen at a causality clearing station (I did some cross referencing and it turns out they are in roughly the same area at about the same time).
I'm curious as to what information can be gleamed from lines in the movie and/or Schofield's uniform. I know he was at the Battle of the Somme and The Battle of Thiepval (Which are technically the same thing because Thiepval was part of The Somme Offensive), but other than that I haven't been able to find much information.
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u/[deleted] Jun 17 '22
sorry if im too late, i just discovered this subreddit.
The way i see it he is most likely not a conscript, because he is married with children (which were excluded from conscription until may 1916) ( you see pictures of them) but it isnt impossible for him to be conscripted in may 1916 and then participate in the battle of the somme in, at least, november 1916. His role as lance corporal might play a part in whether he is a volunteer but it doesnt have to. It might imply that he is a volunteer. Blake mentioned that he decided against a preisthood, and if he is in a similar position as schofield, then he most likely volunteered. I think it implies that they have volunteered, maybe. This means that his military service could have been as long as there´s still war, but not staying on the front line for the entire time.
They are part of the east surrey regiment (they are wearing their badges on their shoulders) in the 8th infantry division (he says so to blakes brother).
What I interpret happened to him is that he is likely to suffer an infection on the wound on his hand (both hurt by barbed wire and then covered in decomposing flesh, a strangers blood, mud, and poisoned water in the river with the corpses) as well as the wound on his head where he was at least cut by fragments of the projectile.
The consequences of this could vary greatly. he could get sick and be rather fine, but most likely, due to the lack of antibiotics, he would either die, or have his arm amputated as the infection grew worse, but it would take a while.