Study Guide

Definition: In general, irony is a contrast between expectation and reality. Irony can create powerful effects, from humor to strong emotion. There are three common types of irony: verbal irony, situational irony, and dramatic irony.

In the book: The term "Iron Youth" is ironic because it implies strength, power, and the innocence of youth, but the students who were only boys became weak, sad, and "old" after just a short time at the front. It was ironic that the thing that Paul had been wishing for-going home-only proved to him how he didn't fit in anymore and he missed his soldier friends.

Definition: This is the vantage point from which a story is told. The most common points of view are the omniscient, the third person limited, and the first person.

In the book: This novel is written in the first person, from the point of view of Paul Baumer, who tells the events of the story and his thoughts on what is happening to him. The point of view only changes to the third person for the final two paragraphs of the novel after Paul is killed. This choice makes the novel very personal because the reader sees everything through Paul's eyes and more fully understands his thoughts and dreams.

Definition: Figurative language that suggests a comparison between two things that are not usually considered to be alike.

In the book: Remarque compares a trapped insect to an airplane trapped in the light and then shot down: "One of them pauses, and quivers a little. Immediately a second is beside him, a black insect is caught between them and tries to escape-the airman (59)." He describes the feelings of fear the men have by comparing them to flames: "We are little flames poorly sheltered by frail walls against the storm of dissolution and madness, in which we flicker and sometimes almost go out (275)." Paul also refers to the front as a whirlpool and a cage, both of which show different feelings he has in battle or while waiting for battle.

Tone

Definition: The attitude that a writer takes toward the audience, a subject or a character.

In the book: The tone of the novel changes as Remarque shows the different aspects of a soldier's life. Chapters of battle have a darker tone, and Paul shares some of his more depressing thoughts about the war and how it has changed him. Other sections have more humor and fun in them, such as when the men go visit the three girls, when they catch the geese, and when they trick Himmelstoss. The chapter when Paul goes home on leave has an almost sad tone as Paul comes to realize how alone he is and how the people at home do not understand what is really happening at the front.

Humor

Definition: The characteristic of writing that makes it funny or amusing. Humor can be created by words, actions, or ideas and usually creates something unexpected or unusual. Irony is sometimes considered a form of humor.

In the book: Remarque uses humor to give the reader a break from the somber scenes of battle and death. He puts in humor throughout the novel just as the men needed humor to help them survive the war. The scene with the men making a game out of catching the lice, the men making "bathroom" jokes, the "fight" to catch and kill the geese, and the men getting even with Himmelstoss are examples of humor in the story.

Definition: The literary technique authors use to hint or give clues to suggest events that will happen later in the story. It is often used to build suspense or create anxiety.

In the book: Paul promising on his own life to Kemmerich's mother that he died quickly could be a foreshadowing of Paul eventual death. The fact that the new recruits are so young and have had so little training could be a sign that Germany is not doing well in the war. The coffins piled high by the side of the school could foreshadow many deaths to come.

Definition: A literary technique involving the use of an object, event, or character to express an idea more general or broader than itself.

In the book: The boots were a symbol of death and survival. As each person died the boots were given to a survivor and promised to another. The potato cakes from Paul's mother were a symbol of home. They were a good memory for Paul and he enjoyed sharing them with his friends. They reminded him of everything that "home" used to mean, and when his friends ate them it reminded them of their homes. The poplar trees were another symbol of home and peace to Paul. They reminded him of good times and his lost youth. The cherry blossoms reminded Detering so much of home and his farm that he went crazy and deserted.

Remarque shows this in the novel in a number of ways. He points out how the youth fight the battles of the old and in doing so lose their youth or their lives. The scenes in the hospital show the physical suffering and the crippled condition that many men were left in. Paul's feelings when he is home on leave and his many thoughts on the subject also show how separate the soldiers feel from the world and how hard their return will be. The descriptions of the battlefields, destroyed lands, shelled towns, deserted villages, and even a destroyed cemetery show the loss of property and the destruction left afterwards.

The idea of "The Lost Generation" was created by Gertrude Stein to describe a group of American writers who were disillusioned with the way the country was operating after World War I. They had seen the world and were eager for change, while the older generation wanted to go back to the way things were before the war. Because of what they had experienced during the war, they were bitter and did not want to conform to the old rules. This idea came to refer to the entire generation of veterans of The Great War, such as the soldiers in the novel. Paul and his friends believe that the "war has ruined us for everything" because it had effected them in so many ways. Paul is disappointed that the older teachers and trainers that are supposed to help them adjust to adulthood are the ones using them to fight battles they do not understand. They graduated from school with enthusiasm to "take on the world" but now they are discouraged and disconnected with the world. Since they never really had a life as an adult, with their own family and job, they feel it will be harder to adjust to civilian life. When they talk about what to do after the war, most of them cannot think past getting drunk and getting a woman. These depressing thoughts are confirmed for Paul when he goes home on leave. He doesn't feel like his family understands the war and he wants to protect them from the realities. He tries to connect with the things that used to be important to him: his drawings, his butterfly collection, and his book collection; but he only has a "terrible feeling of foreignness" and loss. The soldiers that did return from the Great War came back to a different world. The European soldiers often returned to poverty and the destruction of their own homes. The countries had huge war debts and reparations to pay. Even when there was economic prosperity, the young men who fought in the war still felt lost and misunderstood.

Camaraderie is companionship and a friendly fellowship. This closeness of men in battle was an overriding theme of the novel. This is especially true since several of them had been in school together and known each other for years. They looked out for each other, teased and joked together, suffered in the trenches together, and were each destroyed by or died in the war. When men have to serve in crowded conditions, there is no privacy and you become close very quickly. It becomes like a replacement family. They were lucky they had Kat who was experienced in war and life. He became like their father or older brother and helped them find food and deal with the events of the war. The longer they were together and the more they shared, the greater the loss was when one of them died. One example of this was when Paul tricked the nurse that he had a fever so he could stay with Albert.

The idea of shared humanity is shown in a few ways. As you would expect, the soldiers in each troop take care of each other and try to help and protect each other. The reader feels the sadness and loss when Kemmerich dies, even though Muller seems more concerned about getting his boots. When the new recruits come, they do their best to help them and teach them about the gas and how to withstand long stays in the trenches. One time Kat is even tempted to kill a new recruit to spare him a painful death. The most personal example of this sharing of the feelings of humanity is when Paul kills the Frenchman in the hole. It is the first time he has killed someone in such a "face-to-face" meeting and then had to stay and watch him die. When he looks in his wallet and actually puts a name and occupation with the dead man, he is overcome with grief. He begs for his forgiveness: "Why do they never tell us that you are poor devils like us, that your mothers are just as anxious as ours, and that we have the same fear of death, and the same dying and the same agony-Forgive me, comrade (223)." Paul becomes aware of how much the Russian prisoners are like his own people when he is on guard duty. He feels sorry for their suffering and realizes that the figures in authority "by command" have made them enemies. He shares his cigarettes with them and worries that thinking this way about the "enemy" can be dangerous in battle.

It is Kropp who points out that "as sure as they get a stripe or a star they become different men, just as though they'd swallowed concrete." The men realize that authority and power can corrupt those who have it. The school teacher, Kantorek, who uses his authority to push the boys to enlist; the drill master, Himmelstoss, who abuses his power to inflict pain and suffering for personal grievances; and the Kaiser, who uses his power to send an entire nation to war are each examples of the corrupting influence of power. They also were aware that the opportunity for abuse was greater in the military than in civilian life, and that it was often the men who were the most powerless in civilian life who abused the power the most.