ipl-logo

All Quiet On The Western Front Character Analysis Essay

743 Words3 Pages

When Paul returns home in chapter 7 of All Quiet On The Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque, things appear different than when he left them. Although the surroundings are familiar, Paul himself has changed, and this change has affected his manner of viewing the world around him. He also finds that he can no longer fit in or connect with the world and people around him because of how alien they feel to him. Paul’s change in character has changed the way he views the world because he no longer feels like he fits in with the people at home, he feels uncomfortable with his surroundings wherever he goes, and he can no longer connect to the world around him, the world he grew up in and once knew. His discomfort and disconnection from everything is outrightly stated by Paul himself …show more content…

181). Also, when Kemmerich’s mother asks him to swear he is truthful, he secretly thinks “I would swear to anything. But she seems to believe me… I have to tell how it happened, so I invent a story and I almost believe it myself,” (p. 181). He doesn’t seem remorseful about lying to the mother of his close friend, nor has he even tried to appear remorseful about the death of his close friend, not even when talking to said friend’s mother. Had he had a close friend die before the war, it is certain that he would not lie to their mother about how it happened, nor would he not show any emotion, so this interaction displays how his ability to display emotion has been impeded. In addition, the entire situation that Paul goes through when his father “drags [him] along to a table with a lot of others.”(p. 166) He sees that they don’t understand what war is like at all, as when “a head-master shakes hands with [him] and says: ‘So you come from the front? What is the spirit like out there? Excellent, eh? Excellent?’” (p.

Show More
Related

Character Analysis Of Corporal Himmelstoss In All Quiet On The Western Front

414 Words | 2 Pages

In the novel titled All Quiet on the Western Front, Erich Maria Remarque depicts Corporal Himmelstoss as a cruel man who abuses and demeans the men under his command. There is no stated reason for this but after analyzing the book, it can be inferred that Himmelstoss treated the men in such a harsh manner because he is insecure, cowardly, and sadistic. Himmelstoss is described as “a small undersized fellow… [who] was in civil life a postman” (Remarque 23). Thus, Himmelstoss’ job is not that well-paying and he has an average physical appearance, being short and possessing a big moustache, so he makes up for what he lacks in looks and station by abusing his power.

Read More

All Quiet On The Western Front Rhetorical Analysis Essay

403 Words | 2 Pages

War is a harsh reality that is inflicted upon the unwilling through the “need” of it’s predecessors and those whom wish it. All Quiet on The Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque is about 19 year old Paul and his friends in the “Second Company”. Even though they are just out of school age, they have already seen things that many could not bear to even think about. Eventually, all of his friends die, and even Paul too, dies. Remarque uses diction and syntax as literary devices to express his anti-war theme, or lesson.

Read More

All Quiet On The Western Front: Chapter Analysis

465 Words | 2 Pages

“breeding, education are changing…hardly recognizable any longer”(121)this shows how the norm for paul has become the war. Paul has been in the war for so long that when he returns home he feels out of place and later goes on to talk about he his new home is the front line. Towards the end of the book paul goes into great detail about how the war has drastically changed them all and that for those who have survived the war things will never be the same “few will adapt themselves, some others will merely submit and most will be bewildered”(131). This depicts how paul and his generation will never fully recover from the war things will never be the same few will be able start over but most were scared and lost at war. Paul and his generation are considered the lost generation because they will never be able to fully recover from the war they will forever live in the war mentality because of PTSD or other mental health

Read More

Irony And Metaphors In All Quiet On The Western Front

264 Words | 2 Pages

In All Quiet on the Western Front, Erich Maria Remarque’s use of irony and metaphors to prove that the horrors and evils of war outweigh any positives. When Paul, the main character, and the other men in his company move to the front lines to lay down barbed wire they are shot at and find protection in a cemetery. Paul remarks, “I merely crawl still farther under the coffin, it shall protect me, thought Death himself lies in it.” (67). Paul knows that his only protection from the shootings is inside of one of the coffins, which ironically, is where he would end up if he was shot there.

Read More

All Quiet On The Western Front Kemmerich Character Analysis

337 Words | 2 Pages

The camaraderie that Kemmerich displays explains that sadness comes

Read More

Character Analysis: All Quiet On The Western Front

1026 Words | 5 Pages

Throughout the book we can see the change in the main character Jean’s attitude toward the war. During the beginning of the war he enlists due to his strong want to have an adventure that he will remember for years to come and a feeling of duty to his nation, France. This was common among men during the beginning of the war, they saw it as their right of passage, the great adventure that they were all waiting for to save them from their boring lives. His time in basic training proved to him that he is not the ideal candidate for a soldier. After he was denied becoming an officer, he would try to avoid basic duties that normal soldiers were assigned.

Read More

All Quiet On The Western Front Essay

972 Words | 4 Pages

All Quiet on The Western Front, written by Erich Maria Remarque, is a novel composed after World War One to convey the experiences of German soldiers during this horrific time of fighting. He brought to light many important issues that occur during wars. In this book, three horrors of war that had the largest impact were the lack of sanitation in the trenches, the loss of comrades, and the shock that came from unexpected and ongoing shelling. The lack of sanitation in the trenches caused many diseases, infections, and terrible memories to me made.

Read More

All Quiet On The Western Front: A Character Analysis

1245 Words | 5 Pages

Throughout the story Paul shows that he cares about his comrades by protecting them from the dangers of war, and he also displays that he will guide them in war. Paul uses his skills of intelligence to guide his team in the trenches and at the front, and he passes on his knowledge and tricks of war to the new recruits. Not many soldiers have all of these qualities, which makes Paul stand out more than his comrades. Even today some men don't express the passion and leadership Paul shows in All Quiet on the Western Front, which brings up the fact that the war needs more men like Paul. To sum up, Paul is an honest and true man who will always be there for his comrades when needed, and he is a man the troops are proud to say is a patriotic

Read More

All Quiet On The Western Front Character Analysis

558 Words | 3 Pages

During World War I, "All Quiet on the Western Front" depicts the brutal experiences of young German soldiers, with the film centering on Paul Baumer, who enlists in the army with his classmates due to patriotic speeches given by their teacher. Yet, once on the front lines, they face the true horrors of war, constantly surrounded by danger and the deaths of their fellow soldiers. The film exhibits the emotional toll that war characterizes upon soldiers, showing the treacherous conditions in which they live, with rats and disease-ridden trenches, and the inhumanity of war. The mercilessness of battle and the loss of fellow soldiers start to weigh down on the young troops, making them contemplate why they're even fighting. The movie portrays how these soldiers struggle to retain their humanity amid war.

Read More

Language In All Quiet On The Western Front

1222 Words | 5 Pages

I was a soldier, and now I am nothing but an agony for myself, for my mother, for everything that is so comfortless and without end. I ought never to have come on leave. " Paul cannot connect with his mother, father, or any of his personal possessions because he realizes that he is not the same person. He has to live in fear of the dangers of war, not of the superficial worries of his past. He has formed a new family, and eventually as all his friends die, he becomes satisfied with his own impending death because he knows that although his entire time has been filled with struggles, he will no longer have to fight and will be at peace.

Read More

All Quiet On The Western Front Theme Of Compassion

1249 Words | 5 Pages

Paul states, “It is distressing to watch their movements, to see them begging for something to eat”(Remarque 190). Paul is having a difficult time in the war at this point and cannot stand the fact of seeing people die anymore. He had also just

Read More

Hunters In The Snow Isolation

1628 Words | 7 Pages

As Paul goes from Carnegie Hall to the Schenley to Cordelia Street, “Paul never went up Cordelia Street without a shudder of loathing… He approached it tonight with the nerveless sense of defeat, the hopeless feeling of sinking back forever into ugliness and commonness that he always had when he came home.” (238) Paul does not even feel like he belongs at home. He is totally disgusted with his life, which increases the alienation and isolation that he feels, as he feels that he is the only one who does not belong in this world that he absolutely loathes.

Read More

The Effects Of War In All Quiet On The Western Front

1366 Words | 6 Pages

Paul notices the dramatic transformation that he has endured and struggles to see his home as a “foreign world;” his connection with family and friends at home is “crushed” entirely. His inability to connect with people at home shows the loss of connection with society as a whole. Prior to the war, Paul himself was a civilian and connected well with society. Now that Paul has been submerged in life on the battlefield, he has lost touch with his old self, leaving his identity a shell of his old self. After his visit to home, he finds himself more excited to return to the front due to the exhaustion he faced at home.

Read More

Tomorrow When The War Began Character Analysis

885 Words | 4 Pages

In the novel, Tomorrow When The War Began, by John Marsden is about eight teenagers who confronted a situation that is out of their security and are trying to save their families. Fi, Homer, and Ellie are few of the characters that showed courageousness in the novel; finding out their unknown courage, taking risks, and not giving up to everything that happens. It is some of John Marsden’s message about courage. The characters also demonstrate it while they were in conflict with the soldiers who invaded their town and imprison their families in the Showground. Courage is what Ellie has that she never thought she had.

Read More

Descriptive Essay: All Quiet On The Western Front

841 Words | 4 Pages

December 28th, 1944, near Humain, Belgium. For most of my life introductions were a rarity. I lived on a small farm about fifteen kilometers away from the nearest town, one which we only visited for school, supplies and church. Everyone knew everyone, and if you were a stranger you were not one for long.

Read More

More about All Quiet On The Western Front Character Analysis Essay

Open Document