Anna Kathleen's Bodacious Book Briefings

Welcome back to Anna Kathleen's Bodacious Book Briefings!  I'm excited to have you join me for my fourth post in this series on the book All Quiet on the Western Front  by Erich Maria Remarque.  If you missed my first three posts, I encourage you to go check them out!  This week I will be briefing you on chapters seven, eight, and nine.  We will be focusing on the purpose and effects of war.  Ultimately, we will be trying to answer the question "Why?" Purpose of the War In chapter nine, the Kaiser comes to inspect the troops.  They are all given nice, new uniforms and are taken through drills as though they were back at base camp in preparation for his arrival.  The Kaiser comes, does his inspection, and moves on.  After the Kaiser leaves, the soldiers begin speculating about things.  The conversation starts with Albert asking, "whether there would not have been a war if the Kaiser had said No."   They then begin the...

Last weeks chapters focused mainly on the soldiers lives at camp and we talked about how young the soldiers were.  This week's chapters, chapters 4-6, spend more time talking about the soldiers' lives during battle.  So, this week we will be talking about how these and other soldiers deal with the affects of war, both during the war and after the war is over. During the War 1. Momentarily Forgetting Trauma "Once I fell asleep.  Then waking suddenly with a start I do not know where I am.  I see the rockets and for a moment have the impression that I have fallen asleep at a garden fête.  I don't know whether it is morning or evening...it lasts only a second, then I recognize the silhouette of Katczinsky."   page 60  Here we see a common response to trauma.  It is common for one in the midst of traumatic events to forget what is going on.  This sort of story is heard often:  One is dealing with great trauma. ...

When discussing books, one of the most important things to address is the themes that the book focuses on.  So far, in chapters one, two, and three, All Quiet on the Western Front  has heavily focused on the theme of youth.  It is a frequently mentioned topic in these chapters and really sums up what the first three chapters were about.  Here's how: Age First of all, it is important to note who the main characters are and just what we're talking about when we refer to "youth".  In chapter one, on page three, we are introduced to four 19 year old boys who are fighting as German soldiers in World War I.  NINETEEN!  That is very young to be fighting a war.  And, there mindsets are in sharp contrast with those of the older soldiers. Life Before War Very early on in the book we are introduced to the drill sergeant, Kantorek, and told that, before the war, he had been the boys' school master (page 10).  Later, on chapter two page t...

Welcome Hello all, and welcome to Anna Kathleen's Bodacious Book Briefings!  On this blog, you will see me analyze books, section by section.  I will discuss specific elements of each section and also tell you my overall impressions of the section. The first book I will be briefing you on is All Quiet on the Western Front , by Erich Maria Remarque.  For the first post, I will be giving you some insight on what I feel the title to mean, as well as what I hope to learn from the book. Background Info First of all, some background info.  All Quiet on the Western Front is told from the perspective of a German soldier during World War I.  Erich Maria Remarque was a German soldier in the war, himself.  He wrote this book after the war while living in Switzerland. Breaking Down The Title Western Front When discussing World War I, the term "western front" typically refers to western Europe.  This includes the Allies shown in green (Britain,...