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Leadership In Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet On The Western Front

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“There were thousands of Kantoreks, all of whom were convinced that they were acting for the best--- in a way that cost them nothing. And that is why they let us down so badly” (Remarque 12). Leadership plays an important role in every war, especially those of major importance. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque has many examples of leadership on display. Three types of leadership displayed in the novel are Kantorek’s hypocritical leadership, Himmelstoss’s authoritarian leadership, and Kat’s pack leader qualities. To begin with, Kantorek’s leadership style is hypocritical. Kantorek was the men’s schoolmaster. Throughout the entire time Kantorek taught, he pushed the ideas of signing up to serve in the war to his students in order to play their part for their country. Paul mentioned “I can see him now, as he used to glare at us through his spectacle and say in a moving voice: “Won’t you join up, Comrades?” (Remarque 11). Although he pushed the idea of serving, he would …show more content…

There are such people everywhere but one does not appreciate it at first. Katczinsky is the smartest I know. It’s a good thing to be friends with him, as Kropp and I are, and Haie Westhus too, more or less” (Remarque 37).
The men are very happy to have him around, and he keeps them going. Kat’s pack leader leadership positively influences Paul and the men. Henceforth, leadership is very important in our everyday lives, let alone war. All Quiet on the Western Front displays many different kinds of leadership that influence its main characters, both positively and negatively. Kantorek displays hypocritical leadership through his push of having students sign up, but being a horrible soldier himself. Himmelstoss displays authoritarian leadership through his abuse of power. Kat displays pack leader qualities through being a father-figure to the men. So this begs the question: did these leaders do their part in the war

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Kantorek is the sole cause for the boys’ enlistment in the army, giving the boys’ “long lectures until the whole of [Paul’s] class went, under his shepherding, to the District Commandant and volunteered.” According to Kantorek, the war was glorified while the harsh reality of it was kept hidden from the boys. With an ironic twist for the boys, the glorious war was not what they had in mind as their classmates fell one-by-one; it was not until “the first bombardment that showed [the boys’] mistake, and under it the world as they had taught it to [the boys] broke in pieces.” This evidently shows how Kantorek, has used manipulative propaganda and speeches to trick these innocent adolescents onto a one-way train to living hell; in turn, the originally respected image of Kantorek is shattered in the boys’ brain along with their hope in their future. As the boys entered the military, they encountered Himmelstoss, “the strictest disciplinarian in the camp.”

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