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Comparing A Long Way Gone 'And' All Quiet On The Western Front

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There are many ways and reasons people become soldiers; drafts, poor family situations, abductions, national pride, etc.. In All Quiet on the Western Front and A Long Way Gone, two soldiers, Ishmael Beah and Paul Baumer are enlisted for various reasons, some very similar, and some very different. The reasons that soldiers joined the war during the Sierra Leone Civil War and way they joined during World War I had many similarities, and can still be related to present day recruitment. All Quiet on the Western Front and A Long Way Gone were similar in a few respects to enlistment. One strategy that carried through the both books was that of pride, both of one’s country and of oneself. Paul Baumer of All Quiet on the Western Front ‘voluntarily’ …show more content…

In A Long Way Gone, Ishmael Beah is recruited into the war with similar tactics; default national pride. After his family, friends, village, and life was destroyed by rebels, he becomes angry and hateful towards them. Seeing as the only group fighting against the rebels was the Sierra Leone army, Beah instinctively became more pro-government, and wanted to fight for revenge and to ensure that he, his peers, and other innocent people would not be hurt by them. A second reason that people (tough not necessarily the main characters) in the two stories enlisted was because of the way war was portrayed. In All Quiet on the Western Front, during Paul’s time spent at home, soldeirs were considered heroes and called “the Iron Youth” (Remarque 28). In addition to this, civilians believed that life was better at the front, because, as Paul’s German-master says, “Naturally it's worse here. Naturally. The best for our soldiers every time, that goes without saying.” Young boys are led to believe that not only will the war make them good citizens and possibly heroes, but also that they will be fed well and taken care of. While war was less glamorized for civilians at the start of Beah’s story, when entering camp, it was observed that fighters sat around watching

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