Animal Motifs In All Quiet On The Western Front

Sigmund Freud once argued that "our species has a volcanic potential to erupt in aggression . . . [and] that we harbour not only positive survival instincts but also a self-destructive 'death instinct', which we usually displace towards others in aggression" (Myers 666). Timothy Findley, born in 1930 in Toronto, Canada, explores our human predilection towards violence in his third novel, The Wars. It is human brutality that initiates the horrors of World War I, the war that takes place in this narrative. Findley dedicated this novel to the memory of his uncle, Thomas Irving Findley, who 'died at home of injuries inflicted in the First World War" (Cude 75) and may have propelled him to feel

Many of the images from the novel linger in my mind. Portraying war just by words in order to allow a person to have the slightest sense of what it feels like in an actual war is extremely challenging. The novel All Quiet on the Western Front does a great job at portraying the war. I always think of the scene after Paul takes the life of an innocent soldier from the opposing side and he sits in the trench with the body trying to make what he had done better. This scene turns very upsetting once Paul realizes what he did. Paul tries saving the man by getting him water. Once the man dies Paul rummages through his wallet and sees a picture of the man’s family and that he worked as a printer. Paul talks of when he gets home saying he will be a

The abundant animal imagery in Timothy Findley's book The Wars is used to develop characterization and theme. The protagonist, Robert Ross, has a deep connection with animals that reflects his personality and the situations that he faces. This link between Robert and the animals shows the reader that human nature is not much different than animal nature.

“War doesn't make boys men, it makes men dead” (Ken Gillespie). During the novel, All Quiet on the Western Front, Erich Maria Remarque describes the horrors of war through the character Paul. Convinced to join the war, Paul and his friends, enlist to fight for Germany because their teacher, Kantorek, describes the war as honoring and a great adventure. But, the men quickly learned that they were wronged by their teacher. In the novel, Remarque communicates two major themes through the use of motifs.

Timothy Findley's The Wars describes the history of Robert Ross, a Second Lieutenant in the Canadian Army, during World War 1. The story of Robert Ross is a candid recollection of a young man coming of age in the midst of horror and confusion associated with the "war to end all wars". Presented in the form of an archivist trying to piece together the past from pictures and letters, the narrative account is full of rich imagery and deep meaning. The abundant animal imagery in the novel is used to parallel and reveal the character of Robert Ross, foreshadow the situations he finds himself in, and symbolize hope amidst war.

This is seen when Madame Morrible is having a poetry soiree and begins to tell poetry that is belittling Animals. “Alas! For impropriety, The guillotine of piety. To remedy society Indulge not to satiety In mirth and shameless gaiety. Choose sobering sobriety. Behave as if the deity Approaches in its mystery, And greet it with sonority. Let your especial history Be built upon sorority Whose Virtues do exemplify, And Social Good thus multiply. Animals should be seen and not heard.”(Maguire108-109) The Animals that attend the soiree found the poetry that was said to be degrading and insulting. In addition to this, the Animals are not only demeaned, but also beaten and brutalized. During Fiyero’s visit to a café he is sat next to window, it is at this window that Freyjo sees a family of Bears brutalized and murdered.” The Gale Forcer raised his voice. He had a truncheon in a thong loop at his waist. The cub hid behind the father, and the mother could be seen to growl. … Below, because the Bears had not stood to join the lineup, the soldier raised his cudgel and it came down on the skull of the cub.”(Maguire260) The family of Bears was murdered because the Gale Forcer had the power and authority to do so without consequences. Demeaning and humiliation can take many forms when it is against the Animals, some forms harming only their feelings and others their bodies he end results in the Animals losing their

Setting is a significant literary feature because it is the root of a work. It depicts the overall meaning and purpose of the novel. The setting determines the way a certain character think, act, or feel. Without a setting, characters in a novel have no reason to act or care which defeats the whole purpose of a novel. In Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front the setting is set during World War II, on the western front. Although it is set in a real place and period of time, the characters in the novel does not exist. Throughout the whole novel, readers witness many gruesome and sickening scenes, “We see men living with their skulls blown open; we see soldiers run with their two feet cut off, they stagger on their splintered stumps

The first example of the animals being loyal and supporting Napoleon was when Napoleon had so called “worked hard.” Napoleon ended up sending Squealer to the house to tell them the new arrangements to the animals. Squealer had told the animals “Comrades,” he said, “ I trust that every animal in here appreciates the sacrifice that Comrade Napoleon has made in taking this extra labour upon himself! Do not imagine, comrades, that leadership is a pleasure” (55). He is trying to convince the animals that Napoleon is doing honorable work when in reality he is the enemy.

The novel clearly reiterates the notion that more people conform than rebel when confronted with authoritarian control. The animals in the novel are divided into two categories. Those who have knowledge and therefore power, and those who lack knowledge and therefore are submissive. The main difference is that the submissive animals such as the horses and sheep represent the people that chose to stay uneducated, as it is a much less difficult pathway. They chose this because knowing consequences creates threatening actions against the livelihood of the animals. Despite the animals suffering from violence, poor conditions, and being overworked, they continue to conform as it becomes an easier lifestyle for them. The repetition of the lines “Napoleon is always right” and “I will work harder” showcases how the farm animals follow the routine of others and resign to conformity as their means of life, for it is an easier, simpler outlook to life for them. The idea of being an outlier and having a voice is forsaken by the animals, as the narrative evolves they witness more and more unruly acts of behaviour from the pigs, who are controlling the farm. The emotive language used within the line “Silent and terrified, the animals crept back into the barn” effectively demonstrate how a wave of melancholic and frightened emotions flood through the farm animals, creating a sense of compliance within. The use of threatening tone within the lines “At this there was a terrible baying sound outside, and nine enormous dogs wearing

Napoleon used force to gain control of Animal Farm, and used fear to keep it. When he and Snowball both led the other animals, they had many disagreements. Napoleon saw that Snowball was better at communicating with the animals, so he used the dogs which he had secretly trained to drive Snowball away – permanently. Napoleon used these dogs to keep all the animals ‘in line’ and quash any thought of rebellion with fear.

Singing “Beasts of England” continually unified the animals. Even when the animals received no orders, “ without waiting for further orders, they charged forth in a body,” they unified to fight the enemy and protect their home.

In the novel, the animals were always against the humans. The whole novel is about going against the humans and being the most power ones. After the first time the humans attacked the animals in chapter one, the tone of the story has been rebellion. The animals had many plans to rebel against the humans, and once Old Major passed, the plan was in action. The animals have now started the fight against the humans. Old Major has always been a model of standing up against humans. During his speech in chapter one he said “Why then do we continue in this miserable condition… Man is the only real enemy we have.” (6) The animals think of men as dirty thieves and liars. A song that would represent the emotion and hate of the humans is “Mean” by Taylor Swift.

Old Major tells the animals that they should no longer have to serve under their cruel human master, Mr. Jones. Mr. Jones is an allegorical representation of Czar Nicholas II. The animal’s rebellion begins with good intention, and they continue on a united front until the lust for power overtakes one

At the beginning of the novel, the highly respected Middle White Boar – old Major – presents the animals with a speech, which is intended to plant within the animals his vision of a liberal future for all animals. The essence of Old Majors speech is that ‘...The life of an animal is misery and slavery...’ He is telling them of the reality of their existence - that they are merely slaves for mankind. Old Major explains to the animals that man is the reason why they are forced to persist in such appalling conditions of starvation, over-work and murder. Old Major passes on the wisdom that, to the animals, ‘...Man is the only real enemy we have. Remove Man from the scene and the root cause of

Some of the animals question his way of governing, but no one can declare so because they are afraid of his crucial punishments. Cunning Napoleon establishes a formidable army which consists of nine dogs. He himself raises these dogs from puppies, separating them from other animals so that they will be his obedient soldiers. The others are convinced by his tricky explanation that he educates the puppies with responsibility and they soon forget them until suddenly, “there was a terrible baying sound outside, and nine enormous dogs wearing brass-studded collars came bounding into the barn”(35). At that time, Napoleon and Snowball conflict over the construction of a windmill, and the animals gather to decide whether they will build it or not. However, because of this unexpected advent of an army, the issue is overturned. It is a kind of coup d’e tat because he succeeds in banishing Snowball and unjustly gains the position of the only commander. As his tyranny becomes increasingly strict, an air of antipathy arises among the animals, but again, he suppresses them by fear and power. He forces the animals who protest against him to confess their crime and then orders the dogs to kill them. “When it was all over, the remaining animals, except for the pigs and dogs, crept away in a body. They were shaken and miserable”(57). He conducts the liquidation in front of everyone to show an example intending to control the