achers and parents
had used words, passionately at times, to persuade him and other young
men to enlist in the war effort. After relating the tale of a teacher
who exhorted his students to enlist, Baumer states that "teachers
always carry their feelings ready in their waistcoat pockets, and trot
them out by the hour" (Remarque, All Quiet I. 15). Baumer admits that
he, and others, were fooled by this rhetorical trickery. Parents,
too, were not averse to using words to shame their sons into
enlisting. "At that time even one's parents were ready with the
word 'coward'" (Remarque, All Quiet I. 15). Remembering those days,
Baumer asserts that, as a result of his war experiences, he has
learned how shallow the use of these words was.
Indeed, early in his enlistment, Baumer comprehends that although
authority figures taught that duty to one's country is the greatest
thing, we already knew that death-throes are stronger. But for all
that, we were no mutineers, no deserters, no cowards-they were very
free with these expressions. We loved our country as much as they; we
went courageously into every action; but also we distinguished the
false from true, we had suddenly learned to see. (Remarque, All Quiet
What Baumer and his comrades have learned is that the words and
expressions used by the pillars of society do not reflect the reality
of war and of one's participation in it. As the novel progresses,
Baumer himself uses words in a similarly false fashion.
A number of instances of Baumer's own misuse of language occur
during an important episode in the novel-a period of leave when he
visits his home town. This leave is disastrous for Baumer because he
realizes that he can not communicate with the people on the home front
because of his military experiences and their limited, or nonexistent,
When he first enters his h...