All quiet on the western front lost generation thesis

All quiet on the western front lost generation thesis

Erich Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front describes the young German soldier Paul Bäumer’s experiences in World War I, from his training to his death in battle. However, rather than show us how Paul grows as an individual, developing his own ideas and value system, the novel instead shows how Paul—along with his fellow soldiers—survives the war by doing precisely the opposite The Impact Of Dostoevsky's All Quiet On The Western Front. Only two (2) percent of the Russian men who were born in the s survived the end of the war. In other words, an entire generation of men had disappeared by As a result, there were villages and small communities where the Thesis Statement / Essay Topic #1: Paul Baumer as Representative of the “Lost Generation” in “All Quiet on the Western Front” Paul Baumer is an icon for the so-called “Lost Generation” which was a term first coined by Ernest Hemingway who, like Paul, served during World War I and also was disillusioned with the constant theme preached by teachers and parents about duty and honor for men

lost generation of World war 1 All Quiet on the western fron essays

However, rather than show us how Paul grows as an individual, developing his own ideas and value system, the novel instead shows how Paul—along with his fellow soldiers—survives the war by doing precisely the opposite, all quiet on the western front lost generation thesis. The horrors of battle force the soldiers to develop animalistic instincts and a pack-like bond. There is no place for individuals in war, and therefore no place for a traditional coming-of-age tale.

The opening pages of All Quiet on the Western Front emphasize how war dissolves individual men into a single, collective identity. Most fictional autobiographies are narrated in the first-person singular, as the protagonist recounts his or her development from a child into an adult subject. What unite the soldiers, the reader discovers, are not the head and the heart, but the stomach and the intestines—full bellies and general latrines. In war, that which makes a person human can cost a soldier his sanity, if not his life.

The war becomes the focal point of his universe, and his identity before or after becomes an irrelevant distraction. The only things that matter on the battlefield are the immediate physical stimuli: blood, hunger, bullets, and pain. The soldiers are not only animal-like in the way that all quiet on the western front lost generation thesis reject human emotions and live completely in the present: The violent ways they struggle for power through the exercise of brute force also make them beastly.

Human civilization is just a veneer, Kat argues, and humans have more in common with the animal kingdom than they would like to admit. Yet for Paul, all quiet on the western front lost generation thesis, the prospect of armistice does not seem to promise a return to the human community.

Search all of SparkNotes Search Suggestions Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. No Fear Literature Translations Literature Study Guides Glossary of Literary Terms How to Write Literary Analysis. Biography Biology Chemistry Computer Science Drama Economics Film Health History Math Philosophy Physics Poetry Psychology Short Stories Sociology US Government and Politics. SparkTeach Teacher's Handbook. Character List Paul Bäumer Kantorek Corporal Himmelstoss. Themes Motifs Symbols.

Important Quotes Explained By Theme Savagery Trauma Nationalism By Section Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve By Character Kantorek Paul Bäumer Corporal Himmelstoss Stanislaus Katczinsky Albert Kropp. Suggestions for Further Reading Erich Maria Remarque and All Quiet on the Western Front Background. Please wait while we process your payment. Unlock your FREE SparkNotes Plus Trial!

Unlock your FREE Trial! Sign up and get instant access to save the page as your favorite. Previous section Mini Essays Next section Suggested Essay Topics. Popular pages: All Quiet on the Western Front. Take a Study Break.

All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque - Symbols

, time: 3:35

A Lost Generation in "All Quiet in the Western Front": [Essay Example], words GradesFixer

Erich Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front describes the young German soldier Paul Bäumer’s experiences in World War I, from his training to his death in battle. However, rather than show us how Paul grows as an individual, developing his own ideas and value system, the novel instead shows how Paul—along with his fellow soldiers—survives the war by doing precisely the opposite In All Quiet on the Western Front, we see the Lost Generation in the making. Oddly, it is their youth that makes them particularly susceptible to the destruction of war The lost generation was formed by the constant isolation, violence and disillusionment of the German soldiers of World War I. All Quiet on the Western front illustrates the isolation the men must endure in battle causing them to lose their ambition for a good life, resulting in a lost generation