All Quiet on the Western Front

More possible thematic ideas for the exam:

War shows that men in power brutalize others because they can.

· War’s brutality damages soldier’s humanity because it requires them to separate themselves from their emotions in order to cope.

· Both the novel and the film expose the hypocrisy of nationalism by showing that love for one’s country is not ennobling but is instead a means of exerting power.

12//2: We looked at model paragraphs from classmates + talked through the exam (see Paths proof paragraphs + Exam prompts" attached below).

12/1: We watched the execution scene and practiced writing proof paragraphs (part grade). The execution scene is off limits for the exam. Here's the trench scene before the assault on the anthill + the assault). Here's the scene between Broulllard and Dax + final scene. Here's the scene when Mirea u orders the battery commander to fire on his own men. Here's Mireau's stroll through the trenches. Here's the bayonet or machine gun conversation. Here's the scene where Dax orders Roget to lead the firing squad. Here's the trial and here's the verdict. Here's the cockroach scene. Here's the scene where Broulard confronts Mireau at the end of the film (about the order to fire on his own men). HOMEWORK: C. start with “We have been able to bury Mueller…” on 279 through “…before they had ever heard of such a thing as cover” on 281.

D. start with “ ‘Germany ought to be empty soon…’ “ on 281 through “…as possible into A1’s” on 282.

Tonight, close read the above sections in the novel. Follow these instructions for each section (that means you are making a list twice and writing two reflection paragraphs). First, read closely and make a list (in your notebook) of words and phrases that you find important – look for those vivid verbs (think about why this word and not another) look for patterns – violent words, color words, repetition of words, of ideas, etc. Then, reflect (in a paragraph) about what you’ve discovered. What is Remarque’s view of war in this section and how do you know that? What connections can you make to other sections of the novel? What connections can you make to the film?

11/28-11/29: Paths of Glory . HOMEWORK: For Thursday, read Roger Ebert’s review of Paths of Glory (attached). In your journals, make a list of new insights the review gives you and write about WHY those insights matter (you need at least 3).

11/27: " But what does a court-martial a hundred miles behind the front -line know about it?" (277).

"How senseless is everything that can ever be written, done, or thought, when such things are possible. It must be all lies and of no account when the culture of a thousand years could not prevent this stream of blood being poured out, these torture chambers in their hundreds of thousands" (263).

11/22: We did some close reading today (see "AQWF close reading 8+9 below). We were looking at: 1) language (closely and carefully) - at repetition (WHY?), at word choice (WHY this word?), at sentence structure, variety, etc. (WHY), 2) thematic ideas: brutality + war, chance + war, nationalism + war, 3) connections to other sections in the novel and how do these flesh out thematic ideas?)

“Any non-commissioned officer is more of an enemy to a recruit, any schoolmaster to a pupil, than they are to us. And yet we would shoot at them again and they at us if they were free” (194).

“But every gasp lays my heart bare. This dying man has time with him, he has an invisible dagger with which he stabs me: Time and my thoughts” (221).

HOMEWORK: Please finish the novel for 11/29.

11/21: We worked on chapters 8-9 today (see AQWF 8+9 attached below). You can find the interview we listened to here. I have also attached two Goya pieces below ("A Heroic Feat" and "This is Still Worse")

11/18: "Words, Words, Words. - they do not reach me" (173).

"I ought never to have come on leave" (185).

We continued yesterday's discussion by thinking about Einstein and time (see attachment below).

HOMEWORK: read chapters 8-9 this weekend.

11/17: "But our comrades are dead, we cannot help them, they have their rest--and who knows what is waiting for us? We will make ourselves comfortable and sleep, and eat as much as we can stuff into our bellies, and drink and smoke so that hours are not wasted. Life is short" (139).

It is my mother who says that. She says: 'With the gas and all the rest of it.' She does not know what she is saying, she is merely anxious for me. Should I tell her how we once found three enemy trenches with their garrison all stiff as though stricken with apoplexy? against the parapet, in the dug-outs, just where they were, the men stood and lay about, with blue faces, dead" (161).

11/15: Work for today is attached ("AQWF close reading..."). We also looked at impressionism and expressionism in art then applied what we noticed to the novel (notes attached + artwork). HOMEWORK (for Thursday and Friday): Read at least to the top of page 168 for Thursday. Paul is on his way home for leave. On the front of the notecard: Reflect about the conflicted feelings Paul and others have about leave, the conflicts he finds at home and what this says about war and how it changes Paul. Be specific and clear and fill the front of the card. Also – choose one close reading section for this part that relates to the work we did in class on Tuesday. Write down the page number(s) on the front of the card. On the back of the notecard (For Friday): Paul ends this section writing “I ought never to come on leave” (185). WHY? Think of at least three reasons why and write about these, using specifics from the chapter (do not bullet – reflect). Fill the back of the card.

1/14: You’ll be starting with the film of “Facing It” from the Favorite Poem Project. Remember that your task here is to analyze how the director uses filmic tools to complement Komunyakaa’s view of the war and its aftermath. After you watch, choose one prominent way the film complements Komunyakaa (through tone, through view of war, through view of its aftermath, etc.), and use three filmic tools in the video to support your ideas (make sure to analyze these in terms of how they complement the poem). This is a process grade, not an assessment – it’s our first pass at it.

After you’ve finished, hand in the paper, and read through “Dulce Decorum Est” (on the other side of “Facing It”). Look up words that you don’t know. Underline images that particularly stick out to you. After working with the poem for about 10 minutes, pair up with someone else and talk through the poem (take one set of group notes). Use the images that stick out to you to help you get a sense of view of war. Return to the title – how does that inform view of the war? If there is time, join with another pair and compare notes. Make connections to the novel (at least 4 strong connections to chapters 4-5 group notes). Also – compare the quotes you wrote down from the reading. Choose the best quote from all you chose, write it down and tell me WHY it’s best. Please hand these notes in to the sub (make sure everyone’s name is on them). HOMEWORK (start in class if there is time): read the rest of chapter 6. THINK about the idea of chance and the role it plays in war.

11/10: My pullout quote from chapter three: “ ‘ And if you give a man a little bit of authority he behaves just the same way, he snaps at it too. The things are precisely the same. In himself man is essentially a beast, only he butters over it like a slice of read with a little decorum. The army is based on that; one man must always have power over the other” (Remarque 43-4)

This weekend, read chapters 4 and 5 and start 6 if you can(through 118). We are moving onto the front. In your journal, make a list of brutalities you encounter (there should be a lot of them) and the innocence lost. Choose two quotes that you think are the most important from the reading and write them down too (with the page numbers).

11/9: My pullout quote: "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" (Remarque 12).

Read chapter 3 tonight.

11/7: All Quiet on the Western Front is a landmark war novel about the First World War. Paul Baumer is the first person narrator, and we see the war, the relationships between the soldiers and each other and the soldiers and the world through his eyes. As we’re reading, we’ll be paying close attention to his view of the war, to his view of fellow soldiers and of those in the older generation who send young men to war. Keep in mind the book’s dedication: This book is neither an accusation nor a confession, and least of all an adventure, for death is not an adventure to those who stand face to face with it. It will simply try to tell of a generation of men who, even though they may have escaped shells, were destroyed by the war. Here's the online text

For Wed, read pages 1 – 13 (stop at the page break). On the front of the card, write down 3 things you know about Baumer’s view of war and how you know them, 2 things you know about one of the other characters in the story, 2 things that surprise you (or gross you out) and 2 things that either confuse you or that you want to know more about.. Continue reading the rest of chapter one and all of chapter 2. , As you read, pay attention to contrasts between the way war was (in their heads) before arriving and the way it is now. On the back of the notecard , write down 3 specific examples of their expectations for war before they arrived, and 3 specific examples that illustrate how drastically different war actually is. Make sure to keep a list of who’s who in Paul’s battalion. You will need to add to that list as we continue.

11/4: We spent time today making our way into the war unit by examining Yusef Komunyakaa's "Facing It" about coming to terms with the Vietnam War while standing at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. We also watched the Favorite Poem Project's video of the poem to begin to think about how their composition and other filmic decisions made underscore a particular reading of the poem.