Nothing Left to Live For

It's too bad Mr. Bennett decided to not point out everything and actually make us think instead of just reiterating what was already said in class.. haha just kidding!

With the end of the film, it was clear that everyone died for nothing (existentialism). He fought and survived all these years of war, but just as they begin to talk about an armistice, he dies. Paul had nothing left to live for anyways. His home could no longer satisfy him after seeing the horrors he has seen in battle. He started from a young age, all he knows now is war. He walks around town without anything to do, dissatisfied and with no goals. He's a living corpse. His friends, almost brothers, all died in battle. He is suffering no matter where he goes. He isn't even entirely sure why he's fighting. His death was inevitable but what was the purpose of his life? Grow up, go to war, die for nothing?

He had nothing left to hope for. The untouchable beauty of the butterfly is a great metaphor in the story. The butterfly not only represents beauty, but also a sense of freedom. It can fly off wherever and whenever it pleases. The small, simple movement of Paul's hand led to his death.

There was a lot of examples of dehumanization in the movie. That scene where the soldiers find that Kat is dead was definitely a great scene. They had a corpse lying maybe 10 feet away and they were playing cards! They list off his name like he is just another person on a long list of dead. The lack of emotion is a strong example of dehumanization.