https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1emAa5TPzx2gI-D2XwgHW-ciyj09mO_2K_HBbUjOz3jg/present?pli=1&ueb=true#slide=id.p
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
The Innocence of Winging It
Talking points about the movie and the novel "All Quiet on the Western Front".
1. If you're going to include everything from the novel into the movie, why can't it happen in the order it was written? The dynamic of something chagnes everytime that happens even if it still portrays the same emotions as before.
2. Paul still believes in the innocence of youth deep down inside, if he didn't he wouldn't have lasted as long as he did. Even though most of war is luck, it still has a lot to do with mindset. The newbies in the trenches were likely to go crazy faster because they hadn't had time to adapt like the men who had been there longer. All about presence of mind.
3. The movie was banned from many countries (Italy (1956), Australia (1941), France (1963), and Austria (1980)) and almost banned in the U.S.because it was branded as "anti-military propaganda" and because it had a "sympathetic treatment of Germans".* And many versions of the movie were censored or cut to fit specific countries views. **
4. The director of the movie, while he was filming, actually put out a call for German WW1 army veterans to authenticate uniforms and equipment. Many were cast as officers in the movie and had them drill extras in the movie. **
5. A comical end note: Even though it is his death scene there was a large goof in production. Paul reaches for the butterfly with his left hand but in the close up it shows his right. The hand however, is not even Paul's actor to begin with. It is actually the director's. **
http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article.html?isPreview=&id=355269%7C357370&name=All-Quiet-On-the-Western-Front *
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0020629/ **
1. If you're going to include everything from the novel into the movie, why can't it happen in the order it was written? The dynamic of something chagnes everytime that happens even if it still portrays the same emotions as before.
2. Paul still believes in the innocence of youth deep down inside, if he didn't he wouldn't have lasted as long as he did. Even though most of war is luck, it still has a lot to do with mindset. The newbies in the trenches were likely to go crazy faster because they hadn't had time to adapt like the men who had been there longer. All about presence of mind.
3. The movie was banned from many countries (Italy (1956), Australia (1941), France (1963), and Austria (1980)) and almost banned in the U.S.because it was branded as "anti-military propaganda" and because it had a "sympathetic treatment of Germans".* And many versions of the movie were censored or cut to fit specific countries views. **
4. The director of the movie, while he was filming, actually put out a call for German WW1 army veterans to authenticate uniforms and equipment. Many were cast as officers in the movie and had them drill extras in the movie. **
5. A comical end note: Even though it is his death scene there was a large goof in production. Paul reaches for the butterfly with his left hand but in the close up it shows his right. The hand however, is not even Paul's actor to begin with. It is actually the director's. **
http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article.html?isPreview=&id=355269%7C357370&name=All-Quiet-On-the-Western-Front *
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0020629/ **
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Paul Baumer...My God That's One Letter Away From Bauman...
Paul Baumer is the narrator of
the book, All Quiet On The Western Front.
The book is narrated in 1st person and set up to be like a diary of Paul’s
experiences during war.
When we start the story, he is
a 19-year-old boy just graduated from high school with a mother, father, and
older sister. Due to intense pressure from society (namely one of his school
teachers), Paul enlists in the German army along with 27 of his other
classmates. Paul begins the story with several friends, still a little green
around the gills and optimistic about life. Most of the book is filled with
Paul’s philosophical thinking, reflecting on the war and what it has done to
him and the other men in his platoon. He talks about not only the physical
limits he is pushed to, but also the psychological limits he experiences. Paul
struggles with trying to keep his sanity while battling in a war he is losing,
as well as dealing with the brutal situations which come with trench warfare.
"Just as we turn into animals when we go up to the line . . . so we turn into wags and loafers
when we are resting. . . . We want to live at any price; so we cannot burden ourselves with
feelings which, though they may be ornamental enough in peacetime, would be out of place
here.” (Chapter 7, All Quiet on the Western Front)
Paul speaks of how the war turned him into an animal during battle, because he could only rely
on his most basic instincts, or else he would surely die.
Paul Baumer is a kind and gentle young man, but
because of the war and the pain it"Just as we turn into animals when we go up to the line . . . so we turn into wags and loafers
when we are resting. . . . We want to live at any price; so we cannot burden ourselves with
feelings which, though they may be ornamental enough in peacetime, would be out of place
here.” (Chapter 7, All Quiet on the Western Front)
Paul speaks of how the war turned him into an animal during battle, because he could only rely
on his most basic instincts, or else he would surely die.
induces, Paul learns how to disconnect his mind from his heart. By doing this, Paul becomes
unable to feel the heartache of his comrades’ deaths, as well as the ability to conjure the idea of
a future without war. The most disheartening thing that Paul loses because of the war was his
capacity to feel at home among his family and town that he once loved so much.
Mackenzie Branch
James Kreiman
Amanda Goedeke
Jake Mueller
All Quiet on the Western Front...Last Couple Pages...Does It Really Count As A Chapter?
By Chapter Twelve of All Quiet on the Western
Front, Paul Baumer is disillusioned with his role in life and the role of his
life as it used to be. All his adult life he has been entrenched in a war that
has basically consumed everything about the world as he knew it and destroyed
his perception of what everyone else would see as a normal and functioning
society. As seen in the chapter where he visits home, Paul actually misses the
battlefield when he is gone. He can no longer function under the normal pressures
of society as his body has gotten used to being in high pressure situations all
the time.
“Everyone
talks of peace and armistice. All wait. If it again proves an illusion, then
they will break up; hope is high, it cannot be taken away again without
upheaval. If there is not peace, then there will be revolution.” (Chapter 12, All Quiet on the Western Front)
And even though he’d miss the battlefield, it has grown old. Watching people
die and living in constant fear that he could be the next to go.
“It cannot be
that it has gone, the yearning that made our blood unquiet, the unknown, the
perplexing, the oncoming things, the thousand faces of the future, the melodies
from dreams and from books, the whispers and divinations of women; it cannot be
that this has vanished in bombardment, in despair, in brothels.” (Chapter 12, All Quiet on the Western Front)
It is possible though, that he still believes in the innocence of youth. That
even though his classmates and other soldiers his age and younger have had to
live and die on the battlefield, they still contain traces of the young men
that they were. Hope for the future and hope of a future love still being held
close to their hearts.
“There are
not many of the old hands left. I am the last of the seven fellows from our
class.” (Chapter 12, All Quiet on the Western Front)
He is the last surviving character that was introduced at the beginning of the
novel, which makes sense he being the narrator and all. Of course that all
changes on the backside of the last page when we learn he died on the quietest
day of the year in what is possibly the least descript death of a main
character ever. What killed him? A sniper? Too much gas inhalation? A ninja?
Maybe even a bee sting? It is unlikely however, that it was as is shown in the
movie. There were no birds or drawings involved.
Amanda Goedeke
Mackenzie Branch
James Kreiman
Jake Mueller
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
German Political Party?
SPD Powerpoint!
What is the German equivalent of a Ninja?
Do they even have an equivalent?
What is the German equivalent of a Ninja?
Do they even have an equivalent?
A Political Blogging Adventure
The SPD in Germany is going to be 150 years old in 2013 (aka their next federal elections). That will make it the oldest political party in Germany. If you think about it, America is only just over 200 years old as a nation. That means they’ve been around nearly as long as we have and they’re still not entirely sure what they’re doing. Then again, neither do we. Somehow, in our big powerful nation we’ve been pin headed into two major parties whilst the rest waddle around like beheaded chickens and try to make noise. Germany on the other hand has, lets see…at least FIVE that make noise on a regular basis. That makes much more sense than having TWO and they have a much smaller (geographically and population wise) country than we do. Just makes one wonder if they have as many issues with political party disagreements among the populace as we do. And just imagine what a family dinner could become like if they are anything like us. KABOOM. I had a cousin who just got back from visiting Germany a couple weeks ago and asked him what he gathered of the politics there.
“By pragmatic, I mean that they are forced to compromise with other parties since, normally, multiple parties have to get together to form a government. From what I understand, voters are more forgiving of deviations from party platform since they understand that compromise is a necessary effect of having to share power.”-Jared Bauman (what’s the nice thing about smart cousins? The fact that they’re smart and you can ask them questions and they know how to explain things)
Of course, my group specifically was taking a look at the SPD, so how does that apply to them? Well…They hit some bumps in the road as of late what with their candidate being voted in as Chancellor and then going back on the party’s word and cutting welfare (which the people object to; both the cutting of welfare and the going back on one’s word), but who doesn’t make mistakes? Apparently, cutting welfare is not a popular decision for any party platform…There next plans include creating a minimum wage, shutting down nuclear reactors and favoring a Eurozone fix (which I bet most Germans do seeing as it was one of the only countries who benefited from the change to Euro). Well, good luck guys…I hope your new head man does you good.
Sources:
Jared Bauman
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
A German Blogging Adventure...In Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is located in the Northwestern part of Germany.
Its landscape mainly consists of the North German Plain. There’s also a small amount of highland in the south and heath, bog land with some forest thrown in there in the north and a small 12 island, island chain called the East Frisian Islands to the northwest floating in the North Sea. 325 miles of coastline are below sea level protected by dikes similar to ones in the neighboring Netherlands.
 |
| http://www.german-cities.com/lower-saxony-germany.html |
Lower Saxony’s biggest river is the Weser who runs through most of the lower half of the state and whose tributaries (the Fulda and the Werra) all flow into the North Sea. The fertile marshes that come at the mouth of these rivers creates a wonderful pasture land that supports the flourishing farming economy in the region. The northeastern area of the state is less fertile as it is mainly the Lüneburg Heath. The south central part contains two large lakes; Steinhuder and Dümmer, as well as the Weser, Deister, and Herz mountains.
The climate in this area is mild winters, moderately warm summers, and steady year round rainfall.
Population
The population of Lower Saxony is a little under 8 million people and it has an area of 47,609 square km. The south central belt holds the highest amount of the population while the northlands population is much sparser in comparison. The people Lower Saxony generally consider themselves as Low German, an ancient Saxon line of origin and the use of Plattdeutsch (a mix of Dutch, Frisian, and English, very distinct from the more common High German. Some literature in the area is still printed in Plattdeutsch). Four-fifths of the state is Protestant with a Roman Catholic minority.
Age structure
- 0–14 years: 13.9% (male 5,894,724/female 5,590,373)
- 15–64 years: 66.3% (male 27,811,357/female 26,790,222)
- 65 years and over: 19.8% (male 6,771,972/female 9,542,348) (2007 est.)
- 0–14 years: 13.7% (male 5,768,366/female 5,470,516)
- 15–64 years: 66.1% (male 27,707,761/female 26,676,759)
- 65 years and over: 20.3% (male 7,004,805/female 9,701,551) (2010 est.)
Sex ratio
| http://www.tradebit.com/filedetail.php/153163177v7982197-little-boy-blowing-dandelion-clocks-hohnstorf-lower |
- At birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
- Under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
- 15–64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female
- Total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
Economy
Agriculture is a big part of the economy in Lower Saxony. They grow wheat, potatoes, rye, and oats, the also raise beef, pork and poultry in this region. Mining has also been an important source of income for Lower Saxony. The most things mined now is iron and lignite but silver ore was a big part in the past. Lower Saxony is also an important supplier of crude oil in Europe.
Manufacturing is also a large part to the economy with Hannover and Braunschweig being the main base of diversified industries. The biggest Lower Saxony manufacturer is Volkswagen having five production plants throughout the state. Chemicals, rubber goods, dyes and inks, radios, and other electronic equipment are also produced in this area.
| http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkswagen |
Lower Saxony exports mainly with the United States. In 2008 they exported 5,297,000,000 Euros worth of products to the United States. Mainly do to the fact of the five Volkswagen plants.
A helpful thing to any good economy is having good transportation. Hannover is the most important road and railway junction in Northwestern Germany and also has the main airport for the state.. There is also a line of waterways that have greatly increased movement in the area helped along by the rivers in the area.
| http://www.dredgingtoday.com/2012/04/05/germany-state-of-lower-saxony-assents-to-adjustment-of-elbe-navigation-channel/ |
Cities*
| http://www.theodora.com/wfb/photos/germany/germany_photos_89.html |
- Hanover (German: Hannover) — state capital
- Brunswick — the Lion City and centre of scientific research
- Cuxhaven — a popular seaside resort
- Goslar — beautiful mediaeval town and base for the Harz mountains
- Göttingen — ancient university town
- Hildesheim — wonderfully reconstructed old town around the market square
- Lüneburg — charming historic town and gateway to the Lüneburg Heath
- Oldenburg — cultural hub of the Oldenburg region with a beautiful castle park
- Schoeningen (German: "Schöningen") - mankind's oldest weapons ever found on earth over 320,000 years old
A Brief History
Lower Saxony was created by the British military government merger with the Prussian state of Hanover and the State joined the Federal Republic with a new constitution on June 1st 1993. Before 1871 Lower Saxony was comprised of people from the Saxony tribe mainland in the early 1500’s Saxony was known as the “lower Saxony circle” which survived for several centuries as a “sub-principality” of the “Brunswick and Luneburg”. It was mainly a medieval town. Before 1918 Lower Saxony was still a part of this until 1919 when Brunswick became a free state. From this time till 1948 parts Lower Saxony belonged to the Prussian province of Hesse-Nassau. Up to this point most of Lower Saxony had been put together with the “Constituency Associatio n of Lower Saxony" done in 1920. So with the addition of a few more cities in 1947 Lower Saxony as it is known today was formed.
Culture
Theater
There are three state theaters, one in Hannover, one in Brunswick, and one in Oldenburg. There are also two state playhouses as well as numerous independent theaters all over the place. Many of the smaller theaters really like their Low German.
 |
| http://www.niedersachsen-tourism.com/on-tour-in-helmstedt-1 |
There are three state theaters, one in Hannover, one in Brunswick, and one in Oldenburg. There are also two state playhouses as well as numerous independent theaters all over the place. Many of the smaller theaters really like their Low German.
"The programs of these theatres and playhouses are enriched by a number of outstanding seasonal events - Lower Saxony's dance and theatre festivals. Among the most important of these are the Oldenburg Ballet Festival (annual), the Gandersheim Cathedral Festival (annual), the Tanztheater International (International Dance Theatre) (held annually), Arena (held biennially, 2011), the festival Theaterformen (Forms of Theatre) which takes place in alternate years in Hannover und Brunswick, the Hildesheim Transeuropa Festival (held triennially,2012) and the Oldenburg Prisma Festival (biennially, 2011)."**
Heritage
A variety of churches, manors, gardens, and castles testify to the rich cultural history and how the people of the past lived. There are 44,000 historical monuments that comprise of 82,000 structures.
"Including Cathedral and St Michaelis in Hildesheim, the castles of the Weser Renaissance (such as Hämelschenburg, Bevern and Schwöbber), the Fagus factory in Alfeld, the Rammelsberg mining museum, the Old Towns of Lüneburg and Goslar, the Town Halls in Osnabrück and Lüneburg, the Castle of Celle and two splendid hunting lodges: the Jagdschloss Clemenswerth in Sögel and Jagdschloss Gödens." ***
"Including Cathedral and St Michaelis in Hildesheim, the castles of the Weser Renaissance (such as Hämelschenburg, Bevern and Schwöbber), the Fagus factory in Alfeld, the Rammelsberg mining museum, the Old Towns of Lüneburg and Goslar, the Town Halls in Osnabrück and Lüneburg, the Castle of Celle and two splendid hunting lodges: the Jagdschloss Clemenswerth in Sögel and Jagdschloss Gödens." ***
| http://www.niedersachsen-tourism.com/romans-and-teutons-in-kalkriese-1 |
Linguistic Diversity
Lower Saxony has one of the smallest linguistic areas in Europe called Saterland, they still speak Sater Frisian there which is the third variety of Frisian spoken to be granted official language recognition. Then there is the aforementioned Plattdeutsch, there are 8 million speakers in 8 German states and the highest quantity of them are from Lower Saxony the number coming in around 2 million. There are three varieties of Plattdeutsch present in Lower Saxony; Northern Low German, Easfalian, and Westfalian.
http://www.international.niedersachsen.de/portal/live.php?navigation_id=28586&article_id=99329&_psmand=1016 9/4/2012***
http://www.international.niedersachsen.de/portal/live.php?navigation_id=28582&article_id=99325&_psmand=1016, 9/4/2012**
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