All Quiet On The Western Front Mother Earth Essay

“Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better” (Albert Einstein). When you pay attention to Mother Earth, you will notice motherly nature of her. Mother Earth’s protective features serve as a symbol of comfort to those who suffer. Many people experience the destructive nature of war, but Mother Earth is always present to provide shelter to them. In the 1920 war novel, All Quiet on the Western Front, written by Erich Maria Remarque, Paul enters World War I leaving his innocence behind. From the front to the tomb, Paul reminisces about Mother Earth’s comfort, protection, and love during the horrors of war.

The comfort that Mother Earth provides helps Paul return to the womb as he continually faces death. During the

During the shelling, Paul turns to Mother Earth because she is the only form of protection available. “When he presses himself down upon her long and powerfully, when he buries his face and his limbs deep in her from the fear of death by shell-fire, then she is his only friend, his brother, his mother; he stifles his terror and his cries in her silence and security; she shelters him and releases him for ten seconds to live, to run, ten seconds of life; receives him again and often forever” (55). Mother Earth provides a shelter for Paul during the disastrous bombings. She acts as a family member, who is someone that protects him in any circumstance. He places his body in Mother Earth with fear of getting killed, but he trusts Mother Earth for protection. The geographical features of Mother Earth provides protection as well. “Earth with thy folds, and hollows, and holes, into which a man may fling himself and crouch down” (55). The holes and hollows assist Paul into escaping the evils of war. Paul dreads the bombings, but the strong connection him and Mother Earth helps him escape from the existence of war. Paul relies on Mother Earth only for protection, but he receives protection and

When Paul was a child, he reminisces of how the poplar trees served as a form of love towards him. “Even as children we had a great love for them, they drew us vaguely thither, we played truant the whole day by them and listened to their rustling” (Remarque 120). The sounds of Mother Earth served as a pathway of the brotherly connection between Paul and his friends, which shows the love Paul reminisces about. When Paul gazes toward the trench, he notices two carefree butterflies which are representations of innocence and purity. “One morning two butterflies play in front of our trench. They are brimstone-butterflies, with red spots on their yellow wings. What can they be looking for here? There is not a plant nor a flower for miles. They settle on the teeth of a skull. The birds too are just as carefree, they have long since accustomed themselves to the war” (127-128). The loving nature between the two butterflies is parallel to the loving nature between Paul and Mother Earth because they rely on each other for help during hard times. Paul views Mother Earth as a guardian that will protect him no matter what obstacles his way. There are many forms of love within Mother Earth, and Paul relies on Mother Earth for a sense of