Transcript All Quiet on the Western Front

“This book is to be neither an accusation nor a
confession, and least of all an adventure, for death
is not an adventure to those who stand face to face
with it. It will try simply to tell of a generation of
men who, even though they may have escaped
shells, were destroyed by the war”
What are some words that come
to mind when you think of:
 “WAR”
 “SOLDIERS”
 Born in Osnabruck,
Germany in 1898
 Fought for Germany during
WWI at age 18
 Was wounded 5 times &
swallowed poison gas
 Suffered lung injuries
 Loss of Innocence
 Patriotism
 Disillusionment
 Meaninglessness of deaths in war
 The Horror of War
 Shared Humanity:
 (good guys <-> bad guys)
 If you were on the frontline, would you view
your enemy as a person with feelings, or just
an evil force staring you in the face?
 Would you feel bad if something were to
happen to your enemy?
 Does the enemy deserve compassion too?
 Remarque’s novel shows German
viewpoint during WWI
 Does NOT glorify war
 Remarque shows war’s dark side and
condemns it
 Novel and film banned by Hitler in 1933
 Novel gives Americans insight into
German soldier’s mind
 Began in August 1914 with the assassination of
Archduke Franz Ferdinand
 Started with conflict between AustriaHungary and Serbia
 Germany sided with Austria-Hungary
 Germany  Central Powers
 USA  Allies (France, Russia, Britain, Italy,
Japan)
 Ended with Treaty of Versailles in 1919
 Consisted of battlefields & cruel new
trench warfare tactics
 Used mustard gas, grenades, tanks, air
craft, and wireless communication
 Germany lost 1.7 million men
 US lost over 100,000 men
 1. Grenades
 2. Bayonets
 3. Machine Guns
 4. Pistols
 5. Poison Gas
 6. Rifles
 7. Trench-
Mortars
 1.
 2.
 3.
 4.
 6.
 7.

 The 19 yr. old narrator of the story
 Fought for Germany
 Enlisted with school friends to support
the war effort
 Teacher Kantorek disillusioned young
men like Paul to join army for glory
 Paul loses his innocence and idealism
during WWI
 Best Friend: Stanislaus Katczinsky (Kat)
 Tjaden- skinny locksmith, 19- biggest eater. “Thin as
a grasshopper”
 Haie Westhus- 19, peat digger. Strong- defiant
 Detering- Peasant farmer; misses his wife, loves the
land
 Stansislaus Katczinsky- 40 yrs. old; Leader of the
group; shrewd, cunning. Become's Paul's closest
friend.
 Kropp- Little, smart guy, thinker, a lance-corporal. Can
be feisty with Himmelstoss as he talks back to his leader.
 Muller- 19 years old. Carries his school books with him;
dreams of school exams and physics. Very practical.
Wants Kemmerich's boots after his friend dies. He is a
realist.
 Leer- 19 loves the ladies and daydreaming about women.
Has a full beard
 Kemmerich: Is injured in battle and the flesh wound
leads to him losing his leg (amputated). Got his watch
stolen and later gives his boots away to Muller once he
acknowledges that he is dying
 Kantorek: Teacher, small man with a little
mustache. Paul dislikes him and feels that he
disillusioned the young men by telling them that
joining the war was a glorious way to become a
hero.
 Corporal Himmelstoss: Small man who terrorizes
the men as their drill leader.
 Joseph Behm: First man to be killed in action from
Paul’s class. Got hit in the eye during an attack
http://www.firstworldwar.com/poetsandpro
se/ww1lit.htm
Closely read p. 19-20 again in Ch.
2. What is Paul’s “tone” or attitude
towards the subject matter he is
discussing on these pages? (*Hintthe focus is on youth) Be specific
as you describe Paul’s attitude and
feelings.