Daily Dialogue — April 27, 2016

“You know I can’t run away, that’s why you accuse me. I tell you I didn’t want to kill you. I tried to keep you alive. If you jumped in here again I wouldn’t do it. You see when you jumped in here you were my enemy and I was afraid of you. But you’re just a man like me and I killed you. Forgive me, Comrade. Say that for me, say you forgive me. Oh no you’re dead. Only you’re better off that I am. You’re through. They can’t do any more to you now. Oh God, why did they do this to us. We only wanted to live, you and I. Why should they send us out to fight each other. If they threw away these rifles and these uniforms, you could be my brother, like Kat and Albert. You’ll have to forgive me Comrade, I’ll do all I can. I’ll write to your parents, I’ll write to -”

Paul searches the dead soldier

“I’ll write to your wife, I’ll write to her. I promise she’ll not want for anything. And I’ll help her and your parents too, only forgive me. Forgive me. Forgive me. Forgive me.”

— All Quiet on the Western Front (1930), writing by Erich Maria Remarque (novel), George Abbott, Maxwell Anderson, Del Andrews

The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: War. Today’s suggestion by Michael Waters.

Trivia: Won the 1930 Oscar’s for Best Picture and Best Director. Nominated for its writing.

Dialogue On Dialogue: Commentary by Michael: “First World War soldiers were often executed as cowards or deserters when suffering from trauma related medical conditions that would take another 70+ years to be recognized. The brilliance of this 1930 scene is that it is years ahead of it’s time. Protagonist Paul is starting to lose his mind, trapped in a shell hole with the soldier he has just killed. On another level it is a simple and effective construction of a scene by the writers. Trap the Protagonist with the dead enemy and he’s forced to confront what he’s doing and expose it’s effects on himself.”