Williams

Disenchantment

A soldier whose experiences exemplify the shift from enthusiasm to disillusionment.

IV

Implied as part of the group in the hut, though not explicitly named in this excerpt; the narrator mentions 'we' and the hut's inhabitants.

At Agincourt and Ypres

Williams is the archetypal front-line soldier whose 'vinegar tongue' expresses the men's bitterness about the contrast between their suffering and the comfort of the high command.

I

A private who is suspicious of tall talk about the just cause and heroics, trusting only a known company officer.

II

Emblematic of the ordinary soldier; his bitter resentment grows from the perceived injustice of the separation between combatants and non-combatants.

IV

A soldier who describes a 'queer feel' of being set free and doing the right thing without effort, like a miracle.

II

Not directly named but referenced as a Regular N.C.O. who defends German actions in Belgium.