How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from All Quiet on the Western Front.
Quote #7
PAUL'S MOTHER: Good night, my son.
PAUL: Good night, mother.
PAUL: Oh, mother. Mother. You still think I'm a child. Why can't I put my head in your lap and cry?
Paul's new dream is more like an anti-dream. Rather than imagining what his future could bring, Paul's dream is now to go backward and return to when he was a child. Why? Without a future beyond fighting, he can only wish to return to when he still had dreams and plans and a lap to cry on.