Under Fire (Le Feu), Henri Barbusse, 1917 (original) (raw)

The Story of a Squad

By Henri Barbusse

(1874-1935)

Translated by

Fitzwater Wray

New York

E. P. DUTTON & Co.
681 Fifth Avenue
COPYRIGHT 1917,
By E. P. DUTTON & Co.
Printed in the United States of America

To the memory of the comrades who fell by my side at Crouÿ and on Hill 119 January, May, and September, 1915

Contents

  1. The Vision
  2. In the Earth
  3. The Return
  4. Volpatte and Fouillade
  5. Sanctuary
  6. Habits
  7. Entraining
  8. On Leave
  9. The Anger of Volpatte
  10. Argoval
  11. The Dog
  12. The Doorway
  13. The Big Words
  14. Of Burdens
  15. The Egg
  16. An Idyll
  17. The Sap
  18. A Box of Matches
  19. Bombardment
  20. Under Fire
  21. The Refuge
  22. Going About
  23. The Fatigue-Party
  24. The Dawn

Notes

Le Feu was published in Paris in 1916. We have used the English translation of 1917 here. Some of the British words used will probably need translation as well. A few missing quotation marks have been replaced; the em dash is rendered as two minus signs without space on either side. We have not preserved the page numbers.

The book is rather long to read online. If your time is limited you may wish to skip to chapter 20 and read from there. The first chapter and last give much of the tone of Barbusse's perspective on the war. The year he died, Barbusse published a book on Stalin.

For more online information about World War I, please see the excellent web site, www.worldwar1.com.