Editing Cannon fodder

{{Short description|Derogatory term for combatants regarded as expendable}}
{{other uses}}'''Cannon fodder''' is an informal, derogatory term for [[combatant]]s who are regarded or treated by government or military command as [[wiktionary:expendable|expendable]] in the face of enemy fire. The term is generally used in situations where combatants are forced to fight against hopeless odds (with the foreknowledge that they will suffer extremely high casualties) in an effort to achieve a strategic goal; an example is the [[trench warfare]] of [[World War I]]. The term may also be used (somewhat pejoratively) to differentiate [[infantry]] from other forces (such as artillery troops, air force or the navy), or to distinguish expendable low-grade or inexperienced combatants from more militarily valuable veterans.

The term derives from [[fodder]], as food for [[livestock]]. Soldiers are the metaphorical food for enemy [[cannon]] fire.<ref>See, ''e.g.'', {{cite web|url=http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/entry/cannon%20fodder|title=American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|website=education.yahoo.com|publisher=[[Yahoo! Search]]|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606134638/http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/entry/cannon%20fodder|archivedate=2011-06-06}}</ref>

==Etymology==
The concept of soldiers as fodder, as nothing more than "food" to be consumed by battle, dates back to at least the 16th century. For example, in [[William Shakespeare]]'s play ''[[Henry&nbsp;IV, Part&nbsp;1]]'' there is a scene where Prince Henry ridicules [[John Falstaff]]'s pitiful group of soldiers. Falstaff replies to Prince Henry with [[cynical]] references to [[gunpowder]] and tossing bodies into [[mass grave]] pits, saying that his men are "good enough to toss; food for powder, food for powder; they'll fill a pit as well as better [men]...."

The first attested use of the expression "cannon fodder" is by a French writer, [[François-René de Chateaubriand]]. In his anti-[[Napoleonic]] pamphlet "De Bonaparte et des Bourbons", published in 1814, he criticized the cynical attitude towards recruits that prevailed in the end of [[Napoleon]]'s reign: "''On en était venu à ce point de mépris pour la vie des hommes et pour la France, d'appeler les conscrits la matière première et la chair à canon''"—"the contempt for the lives of men and for France herself has come to the point of calling the [[conscripts]] 'the raw material' and 'the cannon fodder'."<ref>{{in lang|fr}} [[:wikisource:fr:De Buonaparte et des Bourbons|"De Buonaparte et des Bourbons"]] — full text in the French [[Wikisource]].</ref> 

The term appeared in an English translation of a story written by [[Hendrik Conscience]], translated by Mrs. Egwitt and published in the ''Janesville Gazette'', Wisconsin in 1854.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/36892221/blind_rosa_by_henkirk_conscience_1854/|title=Blind Rosa by Henkirk Conscience (1854) - early use of term "cannon fodder"|date=1854-03-18|work=Janesville Daily Gazette|access-date=2019-10-08|pages=1}}</ref> It later appeared in ''The Morning Chronicle'', London in 1861<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/36892249/russia_finland_early_use_of_term/|title=Russia & Finland - early use of term "cannon fodder"|date=1861-05-08|newspaper=[[The Morning Chronicle]]|access-date=2019-10-08|pages=5}}</ref> and was popularized during [[World War I]].<ref>{{cite web | title=How World War I gave us 'cooties' | last=Lighter | first=Jonathan | website=[[CNN]] | date=June 25, 2014 | url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/20/opinion/lighter-world-war-i-language/ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140801100522/http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/20/opinion/lighter-world-war-i-language/ | archive-date=August 1, 2014 | url-status=dead }}</ref>

==See also==

* [[Conscription and sexism]]
* [[Male expendability]]
;Military tactics/units
* [[Forlorn hope]]: an initial wave of assault troops expected to sustain high casualties while attacking a well-defended target.
* [[Human shield]]: a situation in which the potential for civilian casualties deters attacks on a military target.
* [[Human wave attack]]: an assault in which a disproportionately large number of attackers is intended to overwhelm a well-defended target.
* [[Penal military unit]]: a combat formation composed of either personnel sentenced under military  law, or civilian convicts who have volunteered or been drafted into military service.
* [[Shock troops]]: infantry at the forefront of an attack.
* [[Suicide attack]]: an attack in which the self-actuated death of the attacker serves to inflict enemy casualties as well (bombing, [[Kamikaze]] etc.).

;Other cultural analogs
* [[Charge of the Light Brigade]], where soldiers fought bravely despite facing a near certain death.
* The play ''[[Oh, What a Lovely War!]]'', devised by [[Joan Littlewood]]'s [[Theatre Workshop]], and in particular the dialogue given to [[Douglas Haig]], is centred on this theme.
* [[Redshirt (stock character)|Redshirt]], a fictional character whose sole purpose is to die soon after being introduced.
* [[Sacrificial lamb]], someone who is sacrificed for the common good.
* [[Camp body]], preseason players on [[National Football League]] team rosters. Used mainly to fill out the team and eat up playing time late in games (thus minimizing injury risk to veteran and valuable drafted players), and who have little chance of making the cuts onto the final roster.<ref>{{cite news|last=Woods|first=David P.|url=https://www.thescore.com/news/1089230-did-rex-ryan-s-joke-about-using-players-as-cannon-fodder-go-too-far|title=Did Rex Ryan's joke about using players as 'cannon fodder' go too far?|publisher=[[Score Media and Gaming]]|date=August 30, 2016|access-date=November 16, 2022|quote=It's undeniable that NFL teams allow players they don't plan to keep on the final roster to be subjected to extra punishment in training camp and the preseason. There's a term for it: "camp body." The practice helps keep a team's best players healthy for the season.}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Cannon Fodder}}

[[Category:Nicknames of military personnel]]
[[Category:Metaphors referring to food and drink]]
[[Category:Metaphors referring to war and violence]]
[[Category:François-René de Chateaubriand]]