Abstract This paper is an analysis of "All Quiet on the Western Front". It focuses on the effects of World War I on both the soldiers and society. The author discusses how the soldiers are separated and alienated from society due to the fact that no one can truly comprehend the horrors of the war and the returning soldiers are unable to communicate with those who have not experienced it.
From the paper:
"Erich Maria Remarque's literary breakthrough, All Quiet on the Western Front, still stands at the forefront of a host of novels on that most tragic recurrence in the history of human experience: war. It meticulously chronicles the thoughts of a soldier in World War I while simultaneously detailing the horrors of all wars. The war is seen through the eyes of Paul Baumer, the mouthpiece for Remarque's bitter critique of the ideals of patriotism and nationalism that drove nations into this catastrophe."
Tags: erich, maria, remarque, war, baumer, paul, soldier
Abstract This paper will discuss the book "All Quiet on the Western Front" by Erich Remarque, and learn about the character Paul Baumer, who undergoes many changes in the novel. By understanding the relevance of this main character, we can see how the author constructs him over the period of time in the book.
Abstract This paper analyzes the character of the soldier, Paul Baumer, and examines the radical, irreparable change he undergoes as a result of being a solider. The paper uses scenes and passages described in the book to support this analysis.
From the Paper "Baumer says of Kantorek, "It is very queer that the unhappiness of the world is so often brought on by small men" (10). In retrospect, Baumer realizes that his entire class was mislead by Kantorek, a nationalist, but he also realizes that it was not solely Kantorek's fault. He says, "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" (12). Baumer recalls, "In our hearts, we trusted them. The idea of authority, which they represented, was associated in our minds with a greater insight and a more humane wisdom. But the first death we saw shattered this belief . . . the first bombardment showed us our mistake, and under it the world as they had taught it to us broke in pieces" (12, 13). This illustrates how the boys had to grow up too quickly."
Tags: brutality, war, senseless, animal, fighting, tragedy, painfully, kantorek, nationalist
An analysis of the suffering of the 'lost generation' as depicted in Ernest Hemingway's "A Farewell to Arms" and Erich Maria Remarque's "All Quiet on the Western Front".
Abstract This paper examines how the so-called lost generation suffered from just as many emotional injuries as they did physical ones after witnessing the ravages brought about by war and how two novels that capture and emphasize the raw emotion of battle are Ernest Hemingway's "A Farewell to Arms" and Erich Maria Remarque's "All Quiet on the Western Front". It looks at how, through the experiences of Frederic and Baumer, each author allows us to understand the feelings of detachment, disillusion, and hopelessness often associated with the lost generation.
From the Paper "One of the predominant emotions the lost generation experienced is detachment. Being a soldier and facing death daily has negative repercussions. This detachment can be seen in A Farewell to Arms during Frederic's conversation with the priest. He tells the priest that the soldiers "were beaten to start with. They were beaten when they took them from their farms and put them in the army. That is why the peasant has wisdom, because he is defeated from the start" (Hemingway 179). In addition, he tells the priest that there really is nothing for him to believe in anymore."
Abstract This paper analyzes and compares the two main characters, Okonkwo in Achebe's and Paul Baumer in Remarque's novels. The paper explores the literature to show the profound effects of murder on man, despite that the novels are set in widely different environments and time periods.
From the Paper "Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart refused to change in the face of change; Paul Baumer in All Quiet on the Western Front had to change to survive the life he was forced to live while fighting in World War I. Both men ended their lives isolated from all the things that had once made them content. Okonkwo tries to overcome all the changes that have occurred in Umuofia without success. Paul simply notes that he has changed, and realizes the futility of trying to overcome it. Both men die alone, one a broken man, and one with "an expression of calm," on his face."
Examines ideas of Franklin L. Baumer, James MacGregor Burns & Francis Fukuyama on intellectual connections between 18th Cent. Enlightenment & Romantic Movement of 19th Cent. Philosophy, religion, leadership, politics, revolution.
5,625 words (approx. 22.5 pages), 4 sources, 1996, $ 135.95
From the Paper "The purpose of this research is to examine connections in intellectual history between the ideas of the Enlightenment and those of Romanticism, through the work of Franklin L. Baumer, James MacGregor Burns, and Francis Fukuyama. The plan of the research will be to set forth the thesis, assumption, and evidence of Baumer regarding the relationships between the Enlightenment and Romantic ways of thinking, and then to discuss how Burns's ideas of moral and transformational leadership and Fukuyama's ideas of social philosophy may be said to reflect Baumer's elaboration of continuity and change in Western thought since the period following the late Renaissance.
Any examination of the Enlightenment and Romanticism as critical forces in European intellectual history involves looking at decisive forces that have shaped individual and mass .."
Abstract This paper examines the experiences of Okankwo, Paul Baumer and Primo Levi, who are all individuals forced to adapt to cruel historical circumstances simply in order to survive.
Abstract This paper examines three statements about war, namely, "Older men declare war. But it is the youth that must fight and die," by Herbert Hoover; "Wars have never hurt anybody except the people who die," by Salvador Dali; and "You can't say that civilization don't advance, however, for in every war they kill you in a new way," by Will Rogers. The paper then applies these statements to the book, "All Quiet on the Western Front," by E.M. Remarque, focusing on the character, Kantoreck. The paper then discusses how these words are incorporated into the works of W. Owen, who wrote poetry with strong anti-war sentiments, including his famous "Dulce et Decorum Est" and "Anthem for Doomed Youth".
From the Paper "Owen expressed the futility of lost lives in his poem Anthem for Doomed Youth, "What passing bells for those who die as cattle/Only the monstrous anger of the guns/Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle/Can patter out their hasty orisons." (Owen) Owen cursed the emptiness of the lives and unsung deaths of the youthful soldiers, and cried for their lost lives. Dali makes his statement partly in jest as he is fully aware that the whole of society and culture are hurt by war and by the deaths of so many courageous young men. At the very least their families are affected. Dali means for his words to ring sarcastic while Owen means for them to be vivid recollections of the internal and external losses of those who engage in war."
Abstract This paper explains that murder has a profound affect on man as depicted in Erich Maria Remarque's "All Quiet on the Western Front"
when the protagonist Paul Baumer, gradually moving from an idealistic German student to an embittered and realistic young man forced to both see and perpetuate senseless carnage on men, forgets the reason for hating. The author points out that trapped in the mud of the no-man's land, Paul has his illusions shattered fairly quickly, though he still seems to cling to the belief that there can still be gentleness and beauty in the world. The paper relates that, although Paul has been responsible for men's deaths before, he never witnessed the exact moment that they stopped breathing, until he stabbed a Frenchman in a trench; even after the man has finally died, Paul cannot find his way back to total sanity.
From the Paper "After several months in the war, Paul Baumer goes home. However, he is like the man from the country, who, once accustomed to the noise at night in the city, cannot readjust to the silence of the country. Coming home, he immediately realizes how many things have changed. He has become hardened, his mother is near death, and no one can comprehend what war is truly like. "But a sense of strangeness will not leave me, I cannot feel at home amongst these things. There is my mother, there is my sister, there my case of butterflies, and there the mahogany piano-but I am not myself there. There is a distance, a veil between us." (139). Paul is unable to resume the life he once led, even for just a few weeks. His father continually asks him questions, "...in a way I find stupid and distressing." (143). Paul is also offended by his old German-master, who patronizingly tells him, "You see only your little sector and so cannot have any general survey." (145). "
Abstract This paper analyzes the character of Paul Baumer in Remarque's novel. It highlights, through example from the text, the social and individual effects of war. The author discusses the message of the book, that war is savagery, senseless and soul destroying.
From the Paper "One example of this hardening is seen in the fighting scenes. For example, we read, "The front is a cage in which we must await fearfully whatever may happen" (101). He and the others are forced to deal with change constantly. He tells us that it "makes us indifferent" (101). But change comes in different forms and not always at once. For instance, when Baumer comes face to face with an enemy soldier, he cannot bring himself to kill him. However, in an instant, a basic animal instinct comes over him and he suddenly throws a grenade at the man, killing him. He realizes, "We have become wild beasts. We do not fight, we defend ourselves against annihilation" (113). Another important point we find is how the soldiers are not actually fighting each other as much as they are avoiding death. These scenes allow us to see how the war has hardened the men into creatures that are simply fighting to stay alive."
Abstract This paper examines the scientific and statistical validity of a series of studies that present statistical information on some aspect of the death penalty. It examines methods for excluding jurors in death penalty cases, connections between the death penalty and homicide rates, the link between religion, race and support for the death penalty and links between crime rate increases and the death penalty. The paper discusses the statistical strengths and weaknesses that affect the validity of the studies.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
Neises & Dilehay: "Death Qualification and Conviction Proneness"
Baumer, Messner & Rosenfeld: "Explaining Spatial Variation in Support for Capital Punishment"
Young: "Religious Orientation, Race and Support for the Death Penalty"
Rankin: "Changing Attitudes Toward Capital Punishment"
From the Paper "Despite that honesty, there are further issues that Rankin fails to point out. For instance, the data gathered by the NORC was gathered over a period of four years. While this might seem like a lengthy period, it may not be long enough to identify large-scale social trends of the kind that this study hopes to identify. Additionally, Rankin puts a significant emphasis on who respondents voted for in presidential elections as a means of gauging their political party, political views, and general lifestyle concerns. Unfortunately, this may not be the best indicator of any of those factors. These concerns limit the effectiveness of this research."
Abstract This paper reviews "All Quiet on the Western Front", a 1979 film about the life of soldiers during World War I, directed by Delbert Mann. The author summarizes the film which follows the journey of the main character, Paul Baumer, from a young student who believes the lies told to him by his country that war is glorious, to a hardened soldier who believes that the cause he is fighting for is meaningless. The paper discusses the symbolism of Paul's drawing of a bird before he is shot and killed and also examines the themes of the film; humanity and the horrors of war.
From the Paper "The film underlines the fact that only the governments and leaders of governments who are not risking their lives desire war. The film ends with Paul drawing a bird in the trenches, for one representative image of peace and nature in no man's land, when he is shot and killed. The bird symbolizes Paul's desire to fly free of where he is, and also his old, schoolboy interests and talents, which he abandoned to go to war. Throughout the film he tries to hold onto his drawing ability, to provide himself with some sense of identity outside of the military, although he has fewer and fewer positive images to sketch as the war wears on."
