From Common Sense to Heartbreak 

When 

WWI began, Shaw was on vacation in Torquay, a seaside resorton the shore of the English Channel. He immediately cloistered himselfat his hotel and began writing about the war. Out of that work came hissoon-to-be-infamous 70-page essay,Common Sense About the War.The essay was published as an extensive supplement to theNewStatesmanon November 13, 1914. In it, Shaw took the position that thewar was a senseless fight between the German and English aristocrats andmilitarists in which the ultimate losers would be the general populace ofboth countries. He recounted in detail the history of demonizing propa-ganda by both sides, beginning in the 19th century, and the more recentdiplomatic history leading to the war. Shaw contended that, now that thewar had begun, England and France (with the necessary help of the UnitedStates) must win, but the ultimate peace must not be vindictive. He thenprescribed the key aspects of a desirable armistice. Throughout, Shawderided the hypocrisy and self-righteousness of the English in general andthe diplomats in particular. He also criticized the duplicity of the Church