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4.03 AVERAGE
4.03 AVERAGE
I read this many years as a teenager, liked it, but perhaps was not able to fully take in its horrors. Not that I can say I can do so fully now, having led a sheltered life, but my understanding of the first world war is a lot deeper than it was last time round. The book is told from the perspective of Paul Bäumer, a German infantryman who spends a lot of time on or near the front. He and his classmates were goaded into signing up for the army by their schoolmaster, and Paul and a few others are left. He details his time behind the lines, spent in relative ease with his friends; the difficulty of time on leave back home, unable to connect to the people he treasures; and time on the front line, cowering in trenches and dugouts under heavy shelling and machine gun fire. His description of the nerve-shattering effect of heavy barrage is incomprehensible. No one has ever experienced anything before or since, except in the next world war. It is impossible to even fully understand the psychological harms that were inflicted on those people. That being the case, I won't try to say I fully grasped that aspect of the book. I did though, feel something like that I was there. During the day between reading sessions I found myself drifting to the front, to the trenches, and wondering how Paul and his comrades were getting on; whether they were relaxing behind the lines, trying to blag some extra rations; or whether they were under enemy fire on the front.
In this book full of vignettes detailing a soldier's life, there are two themes that stand out. The first is the youth of the soldiers, and how they exist as a singular generation. They were sent to fight by an older generation, and even older soldiers and officers have women, wives, and families to return home to. Paul and his school friends signed up before they had finished school, around age 16 or 17, and they have no life to return to, as they didn't get a chance to make a life for themselves before they left. As well as the betrayal of the older generation, the younger generation's ignorance of their impossible hardships leave them adrift in society, unable to connect with anyone who didn't face what they faced. The other main theme is comradeship and intimacy between soldiers. Paul and his friends are brothers in arms, and risk their lives for each other without thought. The gentle compassion and understanding that exists between them is very touching. In particular Paul feels close to Kat, an older soldier who is perhaps his only link to an older generation or a father figure. At one point they poach some geese and roast them, sitting in an intimate silence while they cook and eat like a married couple. No one else has seen what they have seen, no one else will die for them, no one else will do.
It's a mind-bending book, since it's impossible to really empathise, to truly imagine yourself in these squalid terrifying situations. Even to be there for a minute is impossible to conjure, let alone an hour, a day, a month, a year. It's a good exercise to try though. Even falling short and finding yourself still in your nice warm, soft bed (something the soldiers dream of) is a worthwhile endeavour.
In this book full of vignettes detailing a soldier's life, there are two themes that stand out. The first is the youth of the soldiers, and how they exist as a singular generation. They were sent to fight by an older generation, and even older soldiers and officers have women, wives, and families to return home to. Paul and his school friends signed up before they had finished school, around age 16 or 17, and they have no life to return to, as they didn't get a chance to make a life for themselves before they left. As well as the betrayal of the older generation, the younger generation's ignorance of their impossible hardships leave them adrift in society, unable to connect with anyone who didn't face what they faced. The other main theme is comradeship and intimacy between soldiers. Paul and his friends are brothers in arms, and risk their lives for each other without thought. The gentle compassion and understanding that exists between them is very touching. In particular Paul feels close to Kat, an older soldier who is perhaps his only link to an older generation or a father figure. At one point they poach some geese and roast them, sitting in an intimate silence while they cook and eat like a married couple. No one else has seen what they have seen, no one else will die for them, no one else will do.
Spoiler
When Kat dies at the end of the book Paul loses the will to go on.It's a mind-bending book, since it's impossible to really empathise, to truly imagine yourself in these squalid terrifying situations. Even to be there for a minute is impossible to conjure, let alone an hour, a day, a month, a year. It's a good exercise to try though. Even falling short and finding yourself still in your nice warm, soft bed (something the soldiers dream of) is a worthwhile endeavour.
4,5
nie czytałam tej książki dla siebie
czytałam ją dla straconego pokolenia
nie czytałam tej książki dla siebie
czytałam ją dla straconego pokolenia
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I read this book when I was a freshman in high school and now I'm revisiting it about a dozen years later.
The amount of figurative language in this book is far greater than I remembered.
Devastating, descriptive, damning.
The amount of figurative language in this book is far greater than I remembered.
Devastating, descriptive, damning.
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical trauma, War
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No