Chapter 6 Review Questions

1. What are the soldiers astonished about as they go towards the trenches to begin the offensive?

2. What does Paul say “hovers over” their lives? (p 101)

3. What animal do the soldiers have trouble with? What do they do about it?

4. What happens to one of the new recruits? Why are the veterans so worried about it?

5. What does Paul daydream about while they are waiting to attack? How does he feel about these daydreams?

6. What happens to one of the soldiers that bothers Paul and his comrades? (p 124)

7. What occurs between Paul and Himmelstoss during battle? (p 132)

8. How many men in Paul’s company survived the offensive?

“The Idea of Authority”  They write.We saw the wounded and dying.They talk.We knew the death-throes.They teach.We saw there was nothing left. Lads of eighteen,A shattered generation,All at once terribly alone.They let us down so badly. 

We trusted them.We went courageously,Then we learned to see.We learned false from true. We trusted them.The first death,The first bombardment. We trusted them.No mutineers, no deserters, no cowards. We trusted them—Our mistake.

Found PoetryDirections: •Use only the words in the specified passage.•You may use whole phrases or single words.•You may change word order—so long as the words remain the same. •There is no set form—you may decide to make your poem rhyme, have a certain rhythm, repeat words or phrases, etc.•There is no length requirement (but keep in mind that short poems must be powerful!)•Be creative!

Found PoetryDirections:

Group 1: page 26 beginning with “So we were put through…” through “…comradeship” on 27. Group 2: page 33 – “Outside the door…” through “…belly alone.

HONORS:Group 1: pg 286 beginning with “There are so many airmen here” through “Must Paul.”

Group 2: pg 293 through pg 295 (Ch 12)

Found PoetryDirections:

• Read your poems aloud in your group and note differences and similarities. Write these down!

• As a group, review which phrases or words were most commonly used. Why do these terms seem significant? Be prepared to share.

• What message or theme does your group think is represented by your passage? Remember: a theme is generally not just one word!

• How does your poem relate to the novel or the larger issue of war? Do you think poetry is better able to express abstract ideas more so than fiction? Why or why not?

How do you deal with stressful or traumatic situations?

With a small group, discuss whether talking about traumatic experiences is a good idea. Under what circumstances might communicating about trauma be helpful? Under what circumstances might it be counterproductive?

When people are under severe stress or dealing with strong negative emotions, they often fall back on certain coping strategies. Also called defense mechanisms, these strategies may temporarily protect a person from painful situations or thoughts, but they usually do not work as long-term solutions.

Defense Mechanisms• Common coping strategies include denial, or refusing to

recognize an emotion or problem; • compensation, or making up for a weakness in one area by

excelling in another; • daydreaming, or inventing situations to escape unpleasant

facts; • displacement, or transferring emotions from the true source to

some other thing or person; • rationalization, or making excuses for one’s actions or feelings; • and regression, or returning to immature behavior to express

emotions.

• We are buried and must dig ourselves out. After an hour the entrance is clear again, and we are calmer because we have had something to do. (p. 107)

• Haie and the driving bands for his girlfriend’s garters.

Coping with our “historical memory”

Saving Private Ryan (1998)

Coping with our “historical memory”

Pearl Harbor (2001)

All Quiet on the Western Front

• Chapter 6 details what life was like for Paul and his unit in the trenches while on an offensive attack.

• Remarque covers both the physical and mental/emotional trauma of what it was like for a soldier to live through and cope with such a high intensity reality.

I think no more of the dead man, he is of no consequence to me now. With one bound the lust to live flares up again and everything that has filled my thoughts goes down before it. (p.)

Is the novel a response to the trauma Remarque experienced himself? Is it a manifestation of coping?

Physical vs. Mental Trauma

Sounds

Sights

Smells

Feelings

Physical vs. Mental Trauma

Man vs. Man

Man vs. Himself

How does Paul cope?

Beginning with pg 119. review the section where Paul details his daydreaming.

On your own reread the section beginning on pg 120 where Paul reflects on the effects of his daydreaming. Paraphrase what Paul is saying, putting it into your own words.

Share with a partner.

For tomorrow:

• Define the words dehumanization and estrangement. Begin thinking about how these terms can apply to our study of the novel.

• Review chapter 7 for class tomorrow.• VOCAB!!!!!!!!

War: A Human Condition?

• Dehumanization- to become deprived of human characteristics, such as individuality, compassion and civility. Ex. The soldiers must dehumanize themselves in order to survive amidst the death and destruction around them.

• Estrangement- to become alienated from a former way of life or relationship; to become a stranger to something. Ex. Paul coming back home from the front and feeling disconnected from his family.

Group Activity:Read the assigned section that deals with Paul’s

estrangement in Ch. 7.• Paul’s estrangement from his dead/dying comrades.

(139)• Paul’s estrangement from sexual intimacy. (148-150)• Paul’s estrangement from his mother. (159-160)• Paul’s estrangement from his fellow villagers. (166-

167)• Paul’s estrangement from his former studies/books.

(171-173)• Paul’s estrangement from Kemmerich’s mother. (180-

182)

• Dead/ dyingcomrades. (139): Nujude, Nicole, Seth, Mia

• Sexual intimacy. (148-150): Darcie, Caroline, Andrew, Jake

• His mother. (159-160): Cassidy, Rachel, Mitch, Faris• His fellow villagers. (166-167): Greta, Kenzie, Mary,

Khalid• His former studies/books. (171-173): Brenna,

Christina, Maxx, Shamar, Vonnie• Kemmerich’s mother. (180-182): Parker, Kathryn,

Matt, Rebecca

Groups

On your overhead:

• Be prepare to present the following to the class:– An explanation of the scenario– Reasons why the war has caused this estrangement– At least one pertinent quotation from the section

with significance• Each group member must participate in the

presentation.• Assign the following roles: Presenter, Note-

taker, Quotation-finder, Analyser.