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How did Paul die in All Quiet on the Western Front?
In the final scene, Paul, in a trench, sees a butterfly and reaches for it. As he leans out of the trench, he is fatally struck by a bullet. The film was based on the novel Im Westen nichts Neues (1929; All Quiet on the Western Front) by Erich Maria Remarque, who served in the German army during World War I.
Does Franz die in All Quiet on the Western Front?
He tells the woman that Kemmerich died instantly, without pain, though she doesn't believe him at first. This shows what Paul would want for himself, a death that means no suffering and a fast end. It's all he can bring himself to hope for in the war.
Who is Baumer in All Quiet on the Western Front?
Paul Baumer is the protagonist of All Quiet on the Western Front. He is a young man, only 20 years old, and he and his friends have been convinced by the rhetoric of their teacher, Mr. Kantorek, that joining the German army would bring them glory and would allow them to serve their patriotic duty.
What does Paul do after Kemmerich's death?
Paul attends Kemmerich's death throes. He lies next to his friend to try to comfort him, assuring him that he will get well and return home.
Does Himmelstoss die?
All of the boys are exhausted, injured, miserable, but there they are, day after day, fighting and dying for the Fatherland, while Himmelstoss, gutless Himmelstoss, survives.
What rank was Paul Bäumer?
LeutnantPaul BäumerAllegianceGerman Empire; Weimar RepublicService/branchInfantry, LuftstreitkräfteYears of service1914–1918RankLeutnant6 more rows
How old is Paul Bäumer in All Quiet on the Western Front?
Paul Bäumer (BOY-muhr) The sensitive twenty-year-old narrator of the novel, who has written poems and a play entitled "Saul." Paul reaches manhood during three years' service as a soldier in the Second Company of the German army during World War I.
How is Paul Bäumer caring?
Paul is a hopeless, brave, caring soldier who is still trying to figure out who he is. Through out the novel Paul shows that he is a caring soldier. He shows how caring he is when Kat was shot in the leg while bringing food and Paul being the caring person risked his own life to save his goof friend Kat.
How did Franz Kemmerich die?
A young boy of only 19 years. Franz Kemmerich had enlisted in the army for World War I along with his best friend and classmate, Bäumer. Kemmerich is shot in the leg early in the story; his injured leg has to be amputated, and he dies shortly after.
Does anyone survive in All Quiet on the Western Front?
The short, epilogue-like final chapter of the novel hammers this point home with savage irony. Paul and his friends survive nearly three years of trench warfare, only to die within months of the peace agreement.
What is ironic about the ending of All Quiet on the Western Front?
It comes from the last few lines of the novel, which state that Paul dies on a day where the only report filed said 'All quiet on the western front. ' This is ironic because clearly, all was not quiet, since Paul is killed on the day. There is still fighting, and men are still dying on both sides.
Does Tjaden die in All Quiet on the Western Front?
Unlike many of Paul's friends in All Quiet on the Western Front, Tjaden does not die.
What does Paul Baumer symbolize?
Paul Baumer is considered representative of "The Lost Generation," which refers to people who came of age during WWI and were forced to suddenly tr...
What happens to Paul Baumer in All Quiet on the Western Front?
Paul finds himself significantly changed by his experiences in the war. He becomes detached and struggles to feel connected to his former life or t...
What is Paul like as a character in All Quiet on the Western Front?
Paul begins as an average, quiet student living in a small German village. However, during the war he is forced to learn to detach from his emotion...
Was Paul Baumer a real person?
Paul Braumer is a fictional character and was not a real person. However, his experiences are described in very realistic terms because they were b...
Why was All Quiet on the Western Front banned?
The novel was banned after being deemed traitorous by the Nazi party in Germany. This was because of its honest representation of the conditions an...
What is the message of All Quiet on the Western Front?
The novel has a strong anti-war message. Remarque emphasizes the psychological and emotional devastation that soldiers experience as a result of wa...
What is the central character in All Quiet on the Western Front?
As the novel’s narrator and protagonist, Paul is the central figure in All Quiet on the Western Front and serves as the mouthpiece for Remarque’s meditations about war. Throughout the novel, Paul ’s inner personality is contrasted with the way the war forces him to act and feel. His memories of the time before the war show that he was once a very different man from the despairing soldier who now narrates the novel. Paul is a compassionate and sensitive young man; before the war, he loved his family and wrote poetry. Because of the horror of the war and the anxiety it induces, Paul , like other soldiers, learns to disconnect his mind from his feelings, keeping his emotions at bay in order to preserve his sanity and survive.
What does Paul fear after the war?
The longer that Paul survives the war and the more that he hates it, the less certain he is that life will be better for him after it ends. This anxiety arises from his belief that the war will have ruined his generation, will have so eviscerated his and his friends’ minds that they will always be “bewildered.”.
Why did Paul write poetry?
Paul is a compassionate and sensitive young man; before the war, he loved his family and wrote poetry. Because of the horror of the war and the anxiety it induces, Paul, like other soldiers, learns to disconnect his mind from his feelings, keeping his emotions at bay in order to preserve his sanity and survive.
What is the main character's reaction to the end of All Quiet on the Western Front?
All right, let's take a moment or two to review. As we learned, by the end of the novel All Quiet on the Western Front, main character Paul Baumer feels as though he has no prospects for life after the war. He sits alone while recovering from a mustard gas attack and is at first saddened and then defiant.
What is the last chapter of All Quiet on the Western Front?
The last full chapter of All Quiet on the Western Front begins years into the war. Most of Paul's friends have died and Paul himself has time to think because he is recuperating after being poisoned with mustard gas. He sits outside under a tree, pondering his future and the future of the other young men who have fought in the war.
What is the ending of All Quiet on the Western Front?
The end of All Quiet on the Western Front includes not only the final chapter, but also a postscript after the chapter that tells of Paul Baumer's fate. The chapter and postscript give the reader an insight into how his service in World War I has changed him psychologically and serve as a fitting ending to his story.
What degree did Jackie have?
Jackie has taught college English and Critical Thinking and has a Master's degree in English Rhetoric and Composition. In Erich M. Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front, the fate of main character Paul Baumer relates Remarque's ultimate thoughts on war and how the soldier's view of war differs from others.
How does Paul speak to us in first person?
Paul speaks to us in first-person through the book, so we get to know him personally and to hear his direct thoughts. As Paul lives through the war, he becomes increasingly disillusioned and displaced. Disillusionment is when you lose the ability to trust or have any sort of faith in someone or something, and displacement is feeling unable to fit in anywhere. Indeed, Paul becomes less trusting of the older generation who sent him to war and feels as though he has no place in modern society because of the violence and death that he has been witness to.
Why is Paul's mental state so poor?
Paul's mental state is poor because of the sadness of losing many of his friends in the war. He thinks that there is no way for him, or any other soldiers, to lead a normal life after all of the violence: Now if we go back we will be weary, broken, burnt out, rootless, and without hope.
What does Paul resolve to do when the war ends?
He resolves to take control of his own life when the war ends and he goes home. Sadly, Paul is killed in war on a day that the army calls quiet. Though Paul's life has ended, he looks as though he is at peace, his mind forever untroubled by the problems of returning to society after the war.
What is the ending of All Quiet on the Western Front?
The short, epilogue-like final chapter of the novel hammers this point home with savage irony. Paul and his friends survive nearly three years of trench warfare, only to die within months of the peace agreement. Paul dies in October 1918 ; the armistice that ended World War I was signed in November. Paul is also the last of the boys in his class. His death marks the end of a generation of young men from his town, who represent the lost generation as a whole. Some soldiers may have survived the war, but, in this chapter, Remarque portrays the conflict as having symbolically eradicated an entire generation.
What happened to Paul in 1918?
In the autumn of 1918 , after the bloodiest summer in Paul’s wartime experience, Paul is the only living member of his original group of classmates. The war continues to rage, but now that the United States has joined the Allies, Germany’s defeat is inevitable, only a matter of time. In light of the extreme privations suffered by both the German soldiers and the German people, it seems likely that if the war does not end soon, the German people will revolt against their leaders.
How long did Paul have to recuperate after he inhaled poison gas?
After inhaling poison gas, Paul is given fourteen days of leave to recuperate.
When was Paul killed?
After years of fighting, Paul is finally killed in October of 1918, on an extraordinarily quiet, peaceful day.
Who perpetrated the final indignity of the novel?
The final indignity of the novel is perpetrated by the German army after Paul’s death, as the army report that day reads: “All quiet on the Western Front”—the source of the novel’s ironic and sardonic title.
Who narrates All Quiet on the Western Front?
To this point, Paul has narrated the events of All Quiet on the Western Front. The last two paragraphs of the novel, however, which detail Paul ’s death, are put forth by an unnamed, unspecified narrator on a separate page of the book.
Who is the last boy in the class?
Paul is also the last of the boys in his class. His death marks the end of a generation of young men from his town, who represent the lost generation as a whole. Some soldiers may have survived the war, but, in this chapter, Remarque portrays the conflict as having symbolically eradicated an entire generation.
What did Paul find when he returned to the front?
When Paul returns to the front, he finds Kat, Müller, Tjaden, and Kropp still alive and uninjured. He shares his potato cakes with them. There is excitement among the ranks: the kaiser, the emperor of Germany, is coming to see the army. In preparation for his visit, everything is cleaned thoroughly, and all the soldiers are given new clothes. But when the kaiser arrives, Paul and the others are disappointed to see that he is not a very remarkable man. After he leaves, the new clothes are taken away. Paul and his friends muse that if a certain thirty people in the world had said “no” to the war, it would not have happened. They conclude that wars are useful only for leaders who want to be in history books.
What does Paul call Gérard?
He calls him “the dead printer.” Like Paul’s detachment from his family and from his own condition, this emotional distancing is necessary. He cannot function as a soldier if he remains in the grip of grief and remorse that he experiences in the hours after killing Duval.
Why does Paul hesitate to read Gérard's name in his paybook?
He hesitates to read Gérard’s name in his paybook because doing so will give his victim an even more concrete identity.
Why does Paul crawl into No Man's Land?
Paul volunteers to crawl into No Man’s Land to gather information about the enemy’s strength. On his way back, he becomes lost. A bombardment begins, and he knows that an attack is coming. He realizes that he must lie still and pretend to be dead, so he crawls into a shell hole to wait until the attack is over.
What does Paul find in the pocketbook?
Paul talks to the dead soldier, explaining that he did not want to kill him. Paul finds a picture of a woman and a little girl in the man’s pocketbook. He reads what he can of the letters tucked inside.
What happened to Paul in the shell hole?
An enemy soldier jumps into the shell hole with him , and Paul quickly stabs him. It is too light outside for Paul to make his way back, so he is forced to wait in the shell hole with the body. As he waits, he notices that the French soldier is not dead. Paul bandages the soldier’s wounds and gives him water.
Who is the dead man in the book The Dead Man?
Every word plunges Paul deeper into guilt and pain. The dead man’s name is Gérard Duval, and he was a printer by trade. Paul copies his address and resolves to send money to his family anonymously. As dark falls again, Paul’s survival instinct reawakens.