"He would not quite be a man
Year: 2023

After the First World War, shell-shock, as a diagnosis for war-related neuroses and trauma, was one means of describing fictional representations of the returning soldier as a gendered failure. From its earliest applications in law and medicine, the term "shell-shock" has conveyed gendered connotations. The language of being "shell-shocked" carried connotations of cowardice, malingering, and treachery. In the afterwar moment, narratives of the returning soldier reinforced shell-shock as a gender