Where Eagles Dare Character Analysis

Entertainment

Unlike the other two novels the class has dealt with, Where Eagles Dare by Alistair MacLean is focused on entertainment instead of realism. The book All Quiet on the Western Front show the authors’ opinions of war to be serious and deadly. He says that there is no such thing as a hero in war, and that it is impossible to win a war with a single person. But MacLean expresses the war as a mission which provides excitement. He also makes Major John Smith,the main character of the novel, as a hero defeating Nazis singlehandedly. Lastly, by having Smith succeeding and surviving the mission, MacLean shows a significant difference between novels regarding death and glory. First, MacLean’s novel contain excitement and tension. For
There are some differences between Maj.Smith and Paul: the heroism. There are lots of heros and they all share common features: leadership, braveness, and moral rules. For example, Batman is brave and has his own moral rule which is to judge bad guys but not to kill them. In Where Eagles Dare, Smith show similar characteristics. In chapter nine, Carraciola said that Smith can not kill people in cold blood. But Smith replied “Because I don’t have to … Move now or I damn well will shoot you. Why the hell should I bother taking you back to England?” (MacLean 174). Smith always try to not kill people. Instead of killing, he unarmed his enemies and live them alone. But against betrayers, Smith says that he will kill him if he has to. This shows his moral rules like other heros. Also his leadership can be find in the novel. He is a major and a leader of the crew. Also his leadership can be find when he command to his members. In chapter four, he says to Mary “ Your name is Maria Schenk, you’re from Diisseldorf, a cousin of a barmaid that works here, and you’ve had TB and been forced to give up your factory job and go to the mountains for your health. … For God’s sake! Smith said impatiently. Time, girl , time! Got it or not?” (MacLean 64). Leader has to have both harshness and determination. In the quotation, he express harshness and determination by deciding what to do and forcing his team member to memorize her fake informations. But unlike Smith, Paul is just a soldier in the war. Instead of a hero, he was a beast. In chapter six, he says “We had become wild beasts. We do not fight, we defend ourselves against annihilation. It is not against men that we fling our bombs what do we know of men … we can destroy and kill, to save ourselves , to save ourselves and to be revenged” (Remarque 113). By describing Paul as a beast, Remarque asserts that in the