All Quiet On The Western Front Imagery
Nature and Culture
The novel is dominated by images of war. But occasionally, as a
marked contrast, there are images of nature that express the
innocence of life in the midst of the carnage. A notable example
comes in the middle of chapter 6, the chapter which describes a
ferocious back-and-forth battle from trench to trench. One morning
Paul sees two butterflies playing in front of his trench. Because of
their life cycle, butterflies are often used as symbols of
metamorphosis, or rebirth. Interestingly, the butterflies in this incident
“settle on the teeth of a skull.” But this image of death and rebirth can
only be meant ironically. As far as the human scene is concerned,
there is here only death and more death. There is no resurrection.
In addition to the butterflies, Paul watches the larks ascending every
morning from No Man’s Land (No Man’s Land was the area between
the rival trenches.) This is another image of nature’s beauty. The lark
is a positive image of life reawakening in the morning. As
Shakespeare puts it in one of his sonnets, the lark “sings hymns at
heaven’s gate.” Used here, the image of the lark brings out the
contrast between the ever-renewing energies of nature and the
destructive energy of man.
Another image of the peace and beauty of nature comes when Paul
observes a line of birch trees at the training camp he is sent to after
his leave is over. He becomes so lost in the play of light and shadow in
the trees that he almost fails to hear the commands given him during
military drills.
The blossoming cherry tree that Detering sees near where the troops
are billeted toward the end of the war, is another image that
represents spring and returning life. It an overwhelmingly powerful
image for Detering since it reminds him of his orchard at home. But as
with the other positive images of nature, this image does not lead to
rebirth, or to anything positive at all. It merely causes Detering to lose
his judgment and go AWOL, so desperate is he to return home.
Another powerful image is of the violin played by the Russian prisoner.
The violin represents the remnants of Western culture, which has
been virtually annihilated during the four years of war. Not
surprisingly, the image possesses a poignant quality: “In the night it is
so thin it sounds frozen. . . it makes a man grow sad.”