E.M.Remarque "Läänerindel Muutuseta"
ideals that he touts.
Corporal Himmelstoss
Like Kantorek, Himmelstoss does not figure heavily in the novel's plot, but his thematic
importance makes him significant to the book as a whole. One of the themes of All Quiet on
the Western Front is that war brings out a savagery and hunger for power that lie latent in
many people, even if they are normally respectable, nonviolent citizens. Himmelstoss is just
such a figure: an unthreatening postman before the war, he evolves into the "terror of
Klosterberg," the most feared disciplinarian in the training camps. Himmelstoss is extremely
cruel to his recruits, forcing them to obey ridiculous and dangerous orders simply because he
enjoys bullying them.
Himmelstoss forces his men to stand outside with no gloves on during a hard frost, risking
frostbite that could lead to the amputation of a finger or the loss of a hand. His idea of a cure
for Tjaden's bed-wetting--making him share a bunk with Kindervater, another bed wetter--is
annaabi.ee 
