Texts show the discourses of the places and time in which they are written. Text on similar topics represent discourses in different or similar ways; this depends on the aim of the author The authors chose to privilege various representations of these discourses. The two texts All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque and “kkkkk” by M and M will be used to compare these representations in terms of the discourses of war, specifically power, isolation, loss of innocence and age.
Introduction notes:
1. Do not start off mentioning the war. This is a literary essay not a history essay
2. Don’t over-hype the novel. The fact that it is the best, greatest, award winning etc has nothing to do with your essay.
3. Do not use the words “This essay will…” “In this essay I will….” That is about Yr6 standard
4. Be brief. Be logical. Make it clear what you are writing about.
• General Thesis for the essay
• Explain the thesis
• Mention the two texts and their authors
• What will you be using these texts for
DO NOT TRY TO BE CREATIVE. YOUR CREATIVITY IS IN YOUR LANGUAGE USE, NOT THE STRUCTURE
PARAGRAPH
Both the novel All Quiet on the Western Front and the poem “kkkkk” represent a discourse of power. The novel privileges the view that it is the older generation, who are not on the battlefield, who hold the power and make the decisions. This can be seen when Paul is talking about this older generation and says that the “idea of authority, which they represented, was associated in our [the young recruits’] minds with a greater insight and a more humane wisdom” (p12). However, Paul also goes on to say that “the first bombardment showed us our mistake... . While they continued to write and talk, we [ the soldiers] saw the wounded and the dying” (pp 12-13). Remarque, through the character of Paul, is showing how the soldiers in the field realize that those older men who have the power to make the decisions have no knowledge of the reality of war. In his...