discussion board 4
Description
All Quiet on the Western Front
Duration: 123:01
User: n/a – Added: 8/12/14
Introduction
This assignment allows students to reflect on the importance of the World War I as our course theme, focusing especially on the social sciences (shell shock/war neuroses/battle fatigue/PTSD), the natural sciences (chemical warfare/chemotherapy), and the humanities (literature/film).
This assignment fulfills/supports
- Module Outcome 3: Explored the history and the cultural influences of World War I as background for the major writing assignments in the course.
- Course Outcome 3: You will have prepared and presented work appropriate to a rhetorical situation; and
- General Education Competency 2: You will have used critical thinking to analyze problems and make logical decisions.
Resources
Watch
All Quiet on the Western Front (1979), an American film from a German novel about World War I. The movie is available on YouTube at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhC4ESwuPPI Although this remake is in many ways inferior to the 1930 classic directed by Lewis Milestone, the film will provide you with a basic understanding of some important topics relating to World War I, including nationalism, shell shock, and trench warfare.
The following articles may be located by searching the FTCC library. Your reading assignment is based on the first letter of your last name:
- A-L “World War I: The Closing Period of the Childhood of Humanity” by Martin H. Levinson
- M-Z “The Foul Tornado: On the Centenary of World War I” by Peter Hitchens
Grading Criteria
Grading on the assignment will be based on the thoughtfulness and the thoroughness of our response to the prompt.
The Prompt
Read the article assigned according to your last initial. Based on the lecture notes, the movie, and the article you read, reflect on the following questions in 150-200 words each (totsl 450-600 words total). Be sure that you refer specifically to the movie and the article; you do not need to cite the source in any particular style; just make sure it is clear you have watched and read the assigned materials!
- How was World War I different from previous wars? Be specific in terms of scope, technology, and/or casualties.
- What are some of the most important lasting effects of World War I? Think in terms of culture, values, and subsequent history.
- Why is it important for us to remember and reflect on the First World War one hundred years later? DO NOT say trite things about courageous fighting men or the edanger of repeating history. Instead, THINK about the unique importance of this particular war. You might want to ponder why your instructor would devote an entire course to it in preparing your response.
No peer responses are required. However, I do encourage you to read your classmates’ posts for a fuller perspective.