Isa
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Post by Isa on Oct 26, 2009 6:06:53 GMT -5
Tentative reading schedule (I thought it might be nice to start discussing the book on Remembrance Day): November 11: Chapters 1 to 5 November 20: Chapters 6 to 8 November 29: Chapters 9 to 12
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Post by Dominique on Oct 26, 2009 6:14:15 GMT -5
That sounds like a nice idea I'm going to get a copy in case I can do it, because I've always wanted to read it. But it's right in my exam period so I'll have to see how I go.
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Post by Carma on Oct 26, 2009 8:14:28 GMT -5
Hmm.. I see my library has it, in German or in Dutch (I think I'm gonna keep it at Dutch). So I'll just check it out, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to paticipate.. with college and graduation and all...
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Post by bookaddict on Oct 26, 2009 11:16:19 GMT -5
I already own a copy. This will be a reread for me.
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Lu
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Post by Lu on Oct 26, 2009 15:35:01 GMT -5
The edition I got from library has 11 chapters The schedule sounds good to me.
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Post by Carma on Oct 27, 2009 8:59:10 GMT -5
The edition I got from library has 11 chapters The schedule sounds good to me. :/ You are missing a chapter? or did they divide the chapters differently?
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Michelle
First novel published
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Post by Michelle on Oct 27, 2009 19:34:56 GMT -5
So I never really had any desire to read this book, but after it was picked, I started looking into it and I feel like it's something I should read so I'm going to try to join you all.
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Lu
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Post by Lu on Oct 28, 2009 2:00:14 GMT -5
The edition I got from library has 11 chapters The schedule sounds good to me. :/ You are missing a chapter? or did they divide the chapters differently? They divide the chapters differently, the edition is quite old but it doesn't look like there are pages missing. I'm going to look for another copy today.
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Isa
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Post by Isa on Nov 11, 2009 19:36:32 GMT -5
So what do you guys think so far? I think it is an incredibly powerful novel, very well written, and still meaningful today. As I was reading the first chapters I kept thinking that it should be mandatory for people who want to join the army on a voluntary basis to read this novel and write a paper about it. The ideals of glory and patriotism that led the characters to volunteer are still present today, and Ithink they need to be balanced out with the actual weight of the war.
What I thought was amazing in this first part of the novel was how easily Remarque makes his point right from the get go with the story of the young soldier who's just been amputated. When Müller goes after his boots, he seems really insensitive, but the narrator immediately steps in to explain that Müller isn't a bad guy - it's just a matter of being practical if you want to make it through the war. Very quickly, we're made to feel like these young men have been desensitized, practically dehumanized, by the war. It's not just wasted youth, it's wasted life, because there's no way you can go back to a normal life after having been through such horrors. It was especially striking when the new recruits arrived, who were in reality almost the same age as the narrator and his friends, but who were still able to feel emotions such as pain, fear and sadness. I also got that feeling in Chapter 5 when Müller asks his friends what they would do if the war were to end tomorrow and they have no idea what to reply, it's almost as though they simply don't expect to make it through the war.
It's not a light-hearted topic for a novel but I'm really glad I finally got the chance to read it because it is deeply moving.
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Lu
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Post by Lu on Nov 12, 2009 14:00:28 GMT -5
I really like it so far. At first I was afraid it would be hard for me to get into a novel about war, because I'm studying a lot lately, but I was completely wrong. Isa, I think 'powerful' is the perfect word to describe this novel! It's so powerful that, after 4 pages, I realized my great-grandfather died in the First World War...of course I knew about it before, but I never felt it so strong and near! The episode of the boots struck me as well, and that Kemmerich himself want Müller to have his boots, when he realized he's not recovering. I think it clearly shows how practical war has made them. It was interesting to see how these young men, who no longer feels young or even connected with their previous lives, are considered by people such as Kantorek, who are at home writing and singing the praises of war. I think Remarque did a good job describing that. Yesterday I was wondering if knowing about the World War II has an influence on the way I'm reading this novel...does it makes any sense? I read somewhere that All Quiet on the Western Front was banned by Nazis and I was trying to understand the attitude, the view of a 1930 reader.
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Isa
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Post by Isa on Nov 12, 2009 14:48:49 GMT -5
It does make sense, Lu. I'd even say that the war in Afghanistan has an influence on the way I'm reading this novel because it's the first war Canada has been involved in since I was born and I can see so many similarities between the young men in the novel and the young men and women who enlist today...
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Kristie
Novel turned into BBC miniseries
"If a book is well written, I always find it too short."
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Post by Kristie on Nov 12, 2009 20:25:18 GMT -5
The part of the book that was about Kemmerich dying was very moving. At first I was upset about Muller and the incident with the boots, but the narrator really did put it in words that made it seem not so heinous a thing to do.
But I kept thinking about Kemmerich. I mean, how would you feel if you knew you would probably fall asleep and never wake up again? He seemed resigned to the fact, but obviously he was sad and upset about it because he cried (as would most people). I think what you said is very true, Isa. While the soldiers are rugid and desensitized/dehumanized, I am amazed to find they are still able to feel fear. But does any soldier really ever get over being afraid? Aren't they always going to have even a small amount of fear? Even if they've seen the worst of the war?
I think the most moving part, to me, was this quote: "Kropp on the other hand is a thinker. He proposes that a declaration of war should be a kind of popular festival with entrance-tickets and bands, like a bull fight. Then in the arena the ministers and generals of the two countries, dressed in bathing-drawers and armed with clubs, can have it out among themselves. Whoever survives, his country wins. That would be much simpler and more just than this arrangement, where the wrong people do the fighting." (page 40 in my book, in Chapter 3) The quote is so true. The diplomats start war and everything like that, but they don't do any of the dirty work (in most cases).
I haven't finished chapter 4 and 5 yet, but I'll add some more when I've finished it. I'm really loving the way the book flows and the impact the story is having on me. I think one of the most important thing is to realize the patriotism and glory, like you said, Isa, that is in the book. I mean, for many of us reading this book, German soldiers during WWI were the enemy. But all soldiers go to war for the same reasons, on one side or the other. It might be more a feeling of duty and yes, sometimes soldiers are drafted. But for the soldiers who volunteer, they often volunteer for similar reasons. And I think it's important for us to realize that our "enemies" are humans as well.
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Isa
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Post by Isa on Nov 12, 2009 22:19:25 GMT -5
To answer your question about fear, I think soldiers come to feel it and react to it the way animals do. Fear is a necessary stress for animals, it keeps them alive when there's a predator coming. Animals are not afraid about the future, they're not afraid they might not find a partner, they're not afraid they might lose a friend... They're only afraid of imminent danger and death, the way these soldiers are. When Remarque writes about horses and rats, I think he's actually pushing the reader to make the connection between soldiers and animals...
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Post by Carma on Nov 13, 2009 6:43:52 GMT -5
I have to say that i didn't want to participate at first, because of my lack of time and because I thought a book about war would be.. boring. But I am glad I decided to join anyway, since it is actually kind of easy to read and it is so interesting! (it is definitaly not written like the war in war&peace ) Did you guys feel bad voor Himmelstoss when the boys attacked him? I actually did... and I pretty much agree with all that has been said before. It is a very moving story. I really like the narator actually, we don't get to know much about his life, but we do know the way he feels and what thinks of things. So in a way, we do get to know him pretty well. I really like Kat, but I'm afraid he's gonna be one of the guys dying in this book..
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