Statement about the human condition:

1. Statement about the human condition: Humans rely on each other for companionship but are able to harm each other for self-preservation. Novel application: Remarque shows this reality by discussing how war affects the relationships between soldiers. Textual example: Ch 4 about the bombardment. Paul helps out the young recruit by placing helmet over his backside. Later, however, he takes an active part in agreeing with Kat to kill the soldier when he is mortally wounded in the hip. Quotation: “An explosion sounds somewhere…Nothing happens– only the monotonous cry ‘Mind– wire,” our knees bend, we are once again half asleep.”

2. Statement about the human condition: Through the lens of war, Remarque shows a human’s capability to feel guilt and remorse. Novel application: Remarque shows this reality by discussing how the horrors of war affect a soldier’s psychology. Textual example: Ch 9, Paul kills a French soldier in what he convinces himself is self-defense after they both occupy the same shell hole. Afterwards, he is caught in the torture of his own mind as he looks through the man’s wallet. Quotation: “Irresolutely I take his wallet in my hand…each word I translate pierces me like a shot in the chest;-- like a stab in the chest.” (225)

3. Statement about the human condition: Some of the greatest human advancements come out of not only a desire to learn, but a necessity. Novel application: Kamkwamba expresses this condition by discussing his motivation to teach himself via the public library once he is no longer able to attend school, his initial motivation being to find a solution to his parents’ economic problems. Textual example: Ch 9 “But most importantly, a windmill could also rotate a pump for water and irrigation….standing there looking at this book, I decided I would build my own.” (169)