All Quiet On The Western Front Analysis

One reoccurring point in the novel that the reader is quickly made aware of is how important a good meal can be to a soldier’s mentality. In the beginning of the novel the reader comes to learn that Paul and his fellow soldiers are currently celebrating because they are receiving double rations of food and other supplies after their company loses 70 soldiers the day before. This excitement, despite the fact that they had just lost almost half of the soldiers in their company, shows how

One of the best, if not the best war novels that is Erich Remarque's “All Quiet on the

I raise my eyes, I let them move around, turn myself with them, one circle, one circle, and I stand in the midst,” (Remarque 291). In this example, Paul has just realized that Kat has died and he is going into a state of shock. Paul goes through a big emotion in this example, he goes into shock and it is implied that he is very sad. As you can see, Remarque does a lot to show destructiveness of war through the emotional problems of Paul and

Paul watched his entire high school class die in war. When Albert got shot he sweared “If they take off my leg, I'll put an end to it” to Paul (Remarque,242). Paul try's his hardest to keep them together, but in the end Paul get sent off to the front knowing once he leaves Albert will end his own life. When Paul is back at the front his father figure Kat gets shot. He carries Kat to the matic and thinks “Kat is saved” (Remarque,290). But “it'll never be over, until” he “tell me it's over” (Fiasco). Paul is told by a matic “he is dead”, he tried to prove he was alive, but to Paul's dismay he found his last friend was dead (Remarque,290). Paul has lost everyone he has ever loved and then lost all hope and strength to live on. Out of physical wounds and mental wounds the loss of a loved one and loss of hope is the worst part of

In the novel, All Quiet on the Western Front, Erich Maria Remarque, starting with the epigraph of the book, defaces the didactic tips that the war burdens Bäumer with, "This book is to be neither an accusation nor a confession, and least of all an adventure, for death is not an adventure to those who stand face to face with it. It will try simply to tell of a generation of men who, even though they may have escaped shells, were destroyed by the war" (1). A variety of books are written about wars, aggression, and the vast majority of them are full of patriotic pathos and romantic passages. As the novel's raconteur and protagonist, Bäumer is the focal figure in All Quiet on the Western Front and fills in as the mouthpiece for Remarque's reflections about war. All through the novel, Bäumer's internal identity is stood out from the way the war drives him to act and feel. His recollections of the time before the war demonstrate that he was at one time an altogether different man from the miserable fighter who now portrays the novel. Bäumer is a caring and naive schoolboy; before the war, he adored his family and composed poetry. Witnessing the awfulness of the war and the tension it instigates, Bäumer, as different warriors, figures out how to separate his psyche from his sentiments, keeping his feelings under control with a specific end goal to save his rational soundness and survive. With his epigraph, Remarque immediately separates

The men come to value not their country but their friendship and comradery. As a group, the men of Troop 9 experience the horrors of war. From experiencing brutal basic training under Corporal Himmelstoss to fighting in the trenches surrounded by gunfire, the men endure it all together. According to Paul their comradeship was “the finest thing that arose out of the war.” The men of Troop 9 act out of comradeship many times as they illustrate with their action their change in values. For instance, in chapter four, the soldiers are bombarded by the German enemies. It is during this time that Paul notices “a fair-headed recruit in utter terror” with his helmet fallen off of his head. When Paul reaches the new recruits side, he places the boy in his arms and secures the boys helmet back upon his head as “red rockets shoot up to the sky.” Once the gunfire begins to cease, the recruit becomes “fiery red” with embarrassment as he realizes he acted in fear and sullied his underpants. Paul, valuing his friendship with both new and old soldiers, encourages the boy to not be embarrassed as this has happened to many men before. Moreover, he gently tells the new recruit to toss his underpants in a nearby bush. As Paul fights, lives, and trains with these men he comes to realize that the soldiers are “nearer than lovers” and comes to value the friendship and comradeship alongside the other

While on leave, Paul also visits his father and some of his father's friends, but does not wish to speak to them about the war. The men are "curious [about the war] in a way that [Paul finds] stupid and distressing." They try to imagine what war is like but they have never experienced it for themselves, so they cannot see the reality of it. When Paul tries to state his opinion, the men argue that "[he] sees only [his] general sector so [he is] not able to judge." These men believe they know more about the war and this makes Paul feel lost. He realizes that "they are different men here, men [he] can not understand..." and Paul wants to be back with those he can relate to, his fellow soldiers. Paul wishes he had never gone on leave because out there "[he] was a soldier, but [at home] he is nothing but an agony to himself." When Paul returns to the battlefield, he is excited to be with his comrades. When he sees his company, "[Paul] jumps up, pushes in amongst them, [his] eyes searching," until he finds his friends. It is then

In this quote, Paul describes what was going through his fellow soldiers and his mind as they enter the war. Remarque also writes that soldier in the

The novel All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque, is story of the fictional character Paul Baumer and his troop Troop 9 as they battle in World War I on the Western Front for Germany. This novel differs from most war novels in that it does not portray the men as valiant soldiers protecting their country. The way that the story is told strips away the romanticized view warfare and portrays the raw emotions that come with being on the front lines of a battle. As both Paul Baumer’s life and the battle progress, Paul’s values, along with those of the other soldiers, evolve until they culminate in Baumer’s own passing.

The fighting in the war resulted in the soldiers losing their humanity and suffering from PTSD. In Remarque’s novel, Paul and his comrades experience traumatic events, which result into them feeling no concern and compassion. Before entering war, Paul says, “By the animal instinct that is awakened in us we are led and protected. It is not conscious; it is far quicker, much more sure, less fallible, than consciousness” (Remarque 56). The horror in the war causes the soldiers to lose their humanity and slowly become

Throughout All Quiet on the Western Front perspectives of war are explored through multiple avenues; such as the characterisation of Kantorek, the Assistant Headmaster and multiple literary techniques. Additionally, “Dulce et Decorum est” by Wilfred Owen explores similar perspectives, deviating from the archetypal representation of war to display the ignorance of the home-front to the realities of war, and the contrast in views between the front line and the home-front. In unison, the texts exhibit the devastating effects of war upon prospective, serving and returning soldiers.

Additionally, Paul needs to stay resolute when in tough times, and must continue on. He goes through many hardships through the book. In the beginning, Paul watches his friend, Kemmerich, die in vain. Despite his friend dying, he still continues on. In the middle of the book, Paul is on leave and decides to go visit his mom and sister. Once he arrives, he finds out that his mom has just been diagnosed with cancer. Paul has to focus on the war, even if he can’t help his mom all the time, Paul has to focus on the war. Later, Paul has to say goodbye to his good friend. “Parting from a friend Albert Kropp was very hard. But a man gets used to that sort of thing in the army” (269). Eventually, all of Paul’s original group of classmates die, and Paul is the only one left. He becomes more resolute as he continues his job as a soldier, and needs to be mentally

The novel, “All Quiet On The Western Front”, centers its self around the events that shape the lives of the soldiers involved in the German army, of World War I. The novel takes focus on the actions of a young, enlisted soldier, named Paul Bäumer, who, through his words, gives the audience a window into the hardship that he, and his classmates, are bearing, while in combat. The novel not only delivers the emotional aspect of the fight, but also, sheds light on the real life, gruesome situations surrounding the lives of the soldiers, to ultimately, tell of a generation of young men who must live, but who must now also, inhabit a form of self mercilessly annihilated by battle.

Remarque is telling the reader that war separates people who are literally the same. With Paul realizing similarities with his enemy, a soldier in Anthem for Doomed Youth also realizes how his enemies are very similar to him.

As Paul and his peers mature in the strict wartime regime, they realise the lengths of change that the war has forced upon them. Remarque’s use of first person narration helps present a realistic interpretation that contrasted with society’s influenced perceptions of honour and war: “’There’s going to be a show’. Perhaps it is our innermost and most secret life that gives a shudder, and then prepares to defend itself” (Remarque, p.38). As a result, an implied sense of authenticity is established to create an emotional directness and thus expands on the specific voice and world of the textual community. This idea is reinforced when Paul returns back to his hometown, where he recognises the futility and weakness of emotions and innocence during a time of societal struggle and regrets returning home. Remarque also highlights the emotional and psychological toll of war through the metaphoric comparison of soldiers to animals: “We have turned into dangerous animals. We are not fighting, we are defending ourselves from annihilation.” (Remarque, p.79) This underlines the necessity of implementing a reliance on animal instinct for survival and instigates a distinguishable dehumanisation of soldiers. All Quiet on the Western Front explores the intricate interplay between