Paul Baumer: a Soldier, a Witness; Just a Boy
In Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front, a novel about the truthful, disturbing reality of war, Paul Baumer, the protagonist, has a very hesitant and rebellious relationship and attitude towards authority that lead to the fading of his mental state. In the beginning, he faces the feelings of betrayal and anger. Those emotions continue to persist, but they “dull-out” over time. The “dulling” becomes “fading” and the “fading” becomes an end. The novel shows this progression slowly throughout Remarque's writing. In the first chapter, Paul shows an anger towards the older generation of that time because they taught and coerced Paul and his schoolmates to believe …show more content…
The first bombardment showed us our mistake, and under it the world as they had taught us broke into pieces,” is what Paul thought when it came to the higher-ups. He’s not being irrational though; there was no possible way to entirely prepare those young boys for war, especially mentally, no matter how skilled the commander was, or believed he was. Kantorek, Paul’s commander, was not the only one that behaved this way; “There were thousands of Kantoreks, all of whom were convinced that they were acting for the best- in a way that cost them nothing.” At this point, Paul was convinced that the commanders were unaware of how soldiers were affected because they themselves didn’t attain the same pain. His anger was primarily focused on commanders such as Kantorek because they continued to pursue the same ideas of preparation and claiming to be good …show more content…
He wrote, “My mother is feeble. It is all much worse than it was last time,” when he returns home on short leave to recover from injury. It was more difficult than last time for Paul to be home because his mother desperately wanted him to stay; he wanted to, but could not. Katczinsky was Paul’s best friend of sorts throughout his experience in battle. When he died, Paul wrote, “Only the Militiaman Stanislaus Katczinsky has died. I know nothing more.” He couldn’t imagine what it would be like without Kat, but in that moment he was gone forever. The anger remains slightly and fades more and leaves him with an all-consuming
In Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front, a novel about the truthful, disturbing reality of war, Paul Baumer, the protagonist, has a very hesitant and rebellious relationship and attitude towards authority that lead to the fading of his mental state. In the beginning, he faces the feelings of betrayal and anger. Those emotions continue to persist, but they “dull-out” over time. The “dulling” becomes “fading” and the “fading” becomes an end. The novel shows this progression slowly throughout Remarque's writing. In the first chapter, Paul shows an anger towards the older generation of that time because they taught and coerced Paul and his schoolmates to believe …show more content…
The first bombardment showed us our mistake, and under it the world as they had taught us broke into pieces,” is what Paul thought when it came to the higher-ups. He’s not being irrational though; there was no possible way to entirely prepare those young boys for war, especially mentally, no matter how skilled the commander was, or believed he was. Kantorek, Paul’s commander, was not the only one that behaved this way; “There were thousands of Kantoreks, all of whom were convinced that they were acting for the best- in a way that cost them nothing.” At this point, Paul was convinced that the commanders were unaware of how soldiers were affected because they themselves didn’t attain the same pain. His anger was primarily focused on commanders such as Kantorek because they continued to pursue the same ideas of preparation and claiming to be good …show more content…
He wrote, “My mother is feeble. It is all much worse than it was last time,” when he returns home on short leave to recover from injury. It was more difficult than last time for Paul to be home because his mother desperately wanted him to stay; he wanted to, but could not. Katczinsky was Paul’s best friend of sorts throughout his experience in battle. When he died, Paul wrote, “Only the Militiaman Stanislaus Katczinsky has died. I know nothing more.” He couldn’t imagine what it would be like without Kat, but in that moment he was gone forever. The anger remains slightly and fades more and leaves him with an all-consuming