The ‘Myth’ of Beaumont-Hamel: Counter-Monumentality and Newfoundland Identity in Edward Riche's Dedication

Abstract

The First World War has had an indelible impact on Newfoundland, shaping not only its relationship with Britain and empire, but also its union with Canada in 1949. For some, the Battle of the Somme was a powerful display of Newfoundland's identity as a British dominion and its loyalty to the mother country. Many Newfoundlanders, however, lament the tragic economic and political consequences of Newfoundland's war service that many believe led to its loss of independence and its union with Canada decades later. Edward Riche's 2017 play Dedication explores the legacy of the First World War on Newfoundland identity and the province's continued positive association with Sir Douglas Haig through the dramatisation of a grieving female journalist interviewing Haig in St. John's in 1924, just before the unveiling of the national war memorial. The play grapples with themes of colonisation, patriotism, and duty as the playwright seeks to challenge the prevailing myth of identity grounded in glorious sacrifice. While the interview in the play raises questions about the war's legacy through its focus on the dedication of the WWI monument by Haig himself, Riche interrogates Newfoundland's established memory of the war, as well as the value of monuments as historical markers of memory and identity.