Name _________________________________ Date ___________________
English 10H Book Clubs—Applying Literary Theory
Book Club Novel: ____________________________________
Question/s Text Evidence
How is the female “The two speak together in an undertone.
All Quiet on the gender perceived? The woman turns a little red and looks
Western Front embarrassed. We grin good-naturedly and
make pooh-poohing gestures, what does it
matter! …He wants to have her, and he
should have her, good. Two men stand at
the door to forestall the sisters and keep
them occupied if they chance to come
along…Lewandowski can only lie on his
side, so one of us props a couple of pillows
against his side, Albert gets the child to
hold, we all turn round a bit, the black
mantilla disappears under the bedclothes,
we make a great clatter and play skat
Feminist noisily.”
Feminist
Analysis
Despite a lack of female characters
throughout Remarque’s anti-war
novel, readers are still exposed to
oppressive stereotypes of the female
gender. In the few scenes female
characters are introduced, they
serve only to care for their male
counterparts. Readers are
introduced to Paul’s sick mother
only in scenes in which she attempts
to fulfill her motherly duty by
preparing Paul food or providing
him with wool undergarments.
Readers are also introduced,
briefly, to Marja, Lewandowski’s
wife, with whom he has sex in front
of the other men. Despite her
embarrassment, Marja obliges
while her husband’s comrades keep
watch. These examples serve to
highlight the repressive role of
females in a society that expects
them to exist merely to serve males.
 Marxist

Psychoanalytic

Other:

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