Pass the Amo!

Pass the Amo! is the advertising slogan for Army Amo, a khaki-colored chocolate bar developed by Paul Marshall for inclusion in British Army ration packs, representing the intersection of commercial ambition, militarism, and class aspiration in the novel. The slogan and the product it promotes encapsulate Marshall's entrepreneurial vision, his political calculations, and the way his wealth and influence insulate him from the consequences of his actions.

Origin and Commercial Vision

Paul Marshall introduces the Army Amo bar and its slogan during his first evening at the Tallis house. He explains to Leon Tallis and Cecilia Tallis that the concept of Army Amo "rested on an assumption that spending on the Armed Forces must go on increasing if Mr. Hitler did not pipe down" and that "there was even a chance that the bar could become part of the standard-issue ration pack." The slogan "Pass the Amo!" is designed to be catchy and memorable, following the pattern of other consumer products of the era that ended in "o," such as Polo, Aero, Oxo, and Brillo, as the Quincey twins point out. Marshall's vision extends beyond mere profit; he sees the bar as a way to secure a massive government contract, potentially requiring "a further five factories" if general conscription were enacted. He presents himself as a visionary, claiming that some board members accused him of being a "warmonger" for pursuing the military contract, but he remains undeterred.

The Product and Its Presentation

Marshall demonstrates the Army Amo bar to the Quincey children in the nursery. He draws from his pocket "a rectangular bar wrapped in greaseproof paper and measuring about four inches by one." He carefully unwraps it and holds it up for inspection, clicking his fingernail against its "smooth shell of drab green." He explains the construction: "Sugar casing, see? Milk chocolate inside. Good for any conditions, even if it melts." He declares, "There'll be one of these inside the kit bag of every soldier in the land. Standard issue." The bar's military-green color and its resilience to melting are key selling points, designed for the rigors of combat. The twins, however, are skeptical, questioning why soldiers would eat chocolate and why children should not receive free sweets. Marshall responds testily, "Because they'll be fighting for their country." Lola Quincey, attempting to appear sophisticated, offers a Latin conjugation, "Amo amas amat," to which Marshall replies, "Exactly." The bar's name and slogan thus carry a pseudo-classical pretension, masking its purely commercial and utilitarian nature.

The Slogan in the Context of War

The slogan "Pass the Amo!" reappears in the grim context of the Dunkirk evacuation, stripped of its advertising glamour. During the retreat, Corporal Nettle and Corporal Mace find an Army Amo bar among the possessions of a dead French soldier. They pass it around, eating it as they walk. The bar, once a symbol of Marshall's commercial triumph and his bet on war, becomes a meager, desperate ration for starving, exhausted soldiers. The slogan's cheerful imperative is ironically juxtaposed with the reality of the battlefield, where the only thing being "passed" is a piece of scavenged chocolate among men fleeing for their lives. The bar's presence in the pocket of a dead man underscores the callousness of Marshall's profiteering from the very conflict that is killing soldiers.

Significance and Irony

The "Pass the Amo!" slogan and the Army Amo bar serve as a concentrated symbol of Paul Marshall's character and the novel's critique of class and capital. Marshall's wealth, derived from a product that is little more than "sugar, chemicals, brown coloring and vegetable oil" with "no cocoa butter," allows him to move with impunity through high society. His bet on war pays off, and he becomes immensely rich. The slogan itself, with its jingoistic and consumerist overtones, is a piece of propaganda that Marshall uses to sell his product and himself. The irony is that while Marshall profits from the war, Robbie Turner, the man he helped destroy, suffers through its horrors. The bar, a symbol of Marshall's cynical opportunism, is a trivial, almost obscene object in the face of the real suffering of war. The slogan's final echo is not in a triumphant advertising campaign, but in the exhausted, hungry mouths of retreating soldiers, a bitter testament to the gulf between commercial fantasy and human reality.