The Death of Paul Bower

The book centers on a group of teenage boys, former classmates and friends pressured into the German army to fight on the front lines. Early in the book, the main character, Paul Bower, reflects on his schoolmasters and even his parents' admonitions to join the fight. Could it be any more self-evident that even in this modern age, those who parade their erudition are often the ones most devoid of simple wisdom?