All Quiet On The Western Front is an account of WW1, from the perspective of a soldier named Paul Baumer. The author of the novel, Erich Maria Remarque, based the novel on his own life as he too fought in the war and was transferred to the Western Front. The war destroyed the men that took part in it. Simply put Remarque’s novel is an example of how the war has shaped history and if it were not read we would still be at war like they were in WW1, disoriented and unorganized. World War 1 was a historical period in which the UK, France and the Russian Empire (known as the Triple Entente) went to war with Germany and Austria-Hungry. It lasted for 4 years spanning from July 29th, 1914 to November 11th, 1918. There was much miscommunication between nations, which in turn was cause for much bloodshed as it led to about 16 million deaths in total. Many historians note this War as the deadliest in world history. As the war progressed, many other nations started joining in and taking sides. Soon enough the war would spread over the world. The wars cause is believed to be due to the assassination of the Archduke Ferdinand of Austria. Because of this, Austria- Hungry declared war on Serbia. One would lead to the other and we were left with a mess of each nation at war with each other, making up the World War. The war would end in the fall of 1918 after 4 years of fighting. Concluding the war the German, Russian, Austria-Hungry and Ottoman Empires would be left. The after effects of
In Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front, soldiers at the front have a better idea than civilians of the true nature of war because they have experienced the war while civilians have only read about it or listened to government propaganda. Remarque is trying to tell us that only those who experience the war can understand how awful war truly is.
In the story “All Quiet on the Westerfront” a guy named Paul goes through many tragedies, such as witnessing death and also killing someone. In an interview with a guy named William Lake, he talks about his stories about how he went through World War 1 and the tragedies he had witnessed. Also in the readings they mention the things they did in war, whether it's Paul helping out the recruits to protect themselves from the danger of the war or if it's William being a messenger having to run across the battlefield. In the book “All Quiet on the Westerfront” Paul goes through World War 1 and goes through people dying everywhere and having to kill to survive, but at the end of chapter 6 Paul has to help out these new recruits because they don’t
Written by Erich Maria Remarque, All Quiet on the Western Front is the tale of a young man by the name of Paul. Paul who is nineteen years old gathers several of his friends from school and together they voluntarily join the army fighting for the Axis alliance. Before they are sent off into actual battle, they are faced with the brutal training camp. Along with this they face the cruelty of the life of a soldier. This made them question the reason for which a soldier fights. They are told that they fight because they must be nationalists and must therefore be patriotic. But they began to understand that these are just clichés and are used to brainwash soldiers. Soon after they graduate they are sent into the fray of war. The premature idea of war being glorious and honourable is destroyed when they step into the gruesome actuality of war. They are forced to live in constant fear for their life. Kemmerich, a friend of Paul, gets injured and contracts gangrene. From this his leg is amputated to stop the infection from spreading. Sadly, the operation was done too late and Kemmerich is declared to be slowly dying. Paul and his friend visit Kemmerich is slowly dying, and Müller, another former classmate, overlooks Kemmerich’s horrible state and says that he wants Kemmerich’s boots for himself. Accustomed to life at war, Paul doesn’t consider Müller insensitive. Paul understands that Muller knows Kemmerich will no longer use his boots
“On Christmas morning, the men awoke to something strange. Absolute quiet.” (Murphy 64) On December 31, 1914, in the middle of the Great War, or otherwise know as World War Ⅰ, all of the soldiers stopped fighting. Most of the commanders of the war were furious.
This essay will consider the different effects created by Erich Maria Remarque in his novel All Quiet on the Western Front. As a writer, Remarque unknowingly left his novel open to readers with completely different perspectives, and to various forms of criticism. This undoubtedly meant that every single reader had been affected by the novel in many different ways which unfortunately for Remarque may have been an effect that he never intended. This essay is divided into 5 main sections. Firstly it will address any of the intentions Remarque could have possibly wanted to propose through his novel, and closely examine the purposes and motives behind All quiet on the Western Front. It will then go on to analyse Remarque’s use of language in various extracts of the novel. Then the content is analysed in two parts; the third part is a brief insight into one of the key themes of the novel, and the fourth part highlights the effects Remarque causes. Finally, some conclusions will be drawn as to whether or Remarque may have intended to achieve a certain effect in his novel, and as to whether or not I personally agree with the comment that through his shaping of language and content, Remarque may have achieved an effect he might not have intended.
All quiet on the Western Front is a book written by Erich Maria Remarque about the frontlines of Germany during WWI, while Omissi’s Indian Voices of the Great War: Soldiers’ Letters is a series of letters written by soldiers and their loved ones describing what they went through on the front lines for the allies as well as at home. Both of these sources describe what it was like to live and fight during the war both from the side of the allies and the Germans. While these sources share a common topic, the frontline and life during WWI, the soldiers took very different stances on the war, their superiors and what they were really fighting for.
The book, All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque can be identified with many themes. Whether the theme is loyalty to friends, the unbelievable suffering at the hands of other human beings, or the beauty of nature in contrast to the horrors of war, none of those are as fitting as the theme: betrayal by adults. The manipulation performed by a trusted schoolmaster, the awful treatment done by someone who is called a leader, and parents going along with what society thinks is right versus what their sons want, all are important factors that explain why betrayal by adults is the central idea of this story.
After reading All Quiet on the Western Front, I thought it was worth reading. While reading it I learned that the pain of death, sacrifice, and service is something that I will never personally understand. I made me think of all the families that had/have lost someone due to a battle, and how much suffering they went through. If I were to rate this book out of six stars, I would give it five and a half stars. I gave it five and half stars due to the fact that Katczinsky died and that Paul ended up being the last one from their original company left in his next tour.
All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Remarque, is a classic anti-war novel about the personal struggles and experiences encountered by a group of young German soldiers as they fight to survive the horrors of World War One. Remarque demonstrates, through the eyes of Paul Baumer, a young German soldier, how the war destroyed an entire generation of men by making them incapable of reintegrating into society because they could no longer relate to older generations, only to fellow soldiers.
Ars Moriendi The complete ensemble gathers to pray and mourn Pius’ passing. Tone is drumming like a military march to symbolize the start of WWI. A bells tolls throughout. Pius sings with labored breath, taking air after every phrase.
The rise of World War I caused millions of casualties and was yet another demonstration of how supposedly civilized nations could be led into a chaotic war of power over lands and people. Since the beginning of civilization, war has been the way of the world. However, with major advances in technology, this idea of war has since become mechanized and deadlier. There is no doubt that the powerful men who lead wars often don’t care to think of nitty gritty of war, to them, rather, it’s a matter of power and legacy. In Remarque’s novel, the particular story of Paul and his comrades is a perfect example of how a generation can be used and manipulated to drive the agenda of power- hungry men. Through Remarque’s own personal experience and unparalleled writing ability, this novel presents many first-hand experiences into the living conditions of soldiers and peoples.
1. Paul Baumer and his friends, as German soldiers in World War I, collectively fight any who oppose the German army. However, Corporal Himmelstoss is an enemy whose transgressions are taken far more personally by Paul and his friends. Himmelstoss often torments Paul and his comrades for the sake of doing so, as he is power-driven and tries to exert control over others whenever he can. It is never stated that the soldiers hate or even dislike the enemies that they fight daily on the battlefield; yet they disfavor Himmelstoss openly. In addition, they all begin to harbor distaste for their former teacher, Kantorek, for encouraging them to join the army. All of the men also struggle against the knowledge that
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.
Mahatma Gandhi, a renowned political and spiritual leader, once said that, “I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary, the evil it does is permanent.” Presume you see two men in a heated argument and one of them is about to attack the other, you take a rock and throw it at him and knock him out. On one hand it is a good thing that you prevented the attack but on the other hand you used violence yourself, and there is no doubt that you would not hesitate to use it again. The good that came from the violence that you used lasted for a short time, but the punishment that you get for doing this lasts for a long time. Imperialism of rivalries and nationalism were two of the main reasons that most
World War I took place in the year of 1914 till the year of 1919. The war went on for 4 years. What triggered the start of World War I was the assassination of Australia’s archduke, Francis Ferdinand. The Black Hand group did not want Archduke Francis to be ruler of their land. Francis’ assassin led Europe’s stability to collapse. Europe desired to build empires and form new alliances. The Allies were the victors. There is an estimation of 10 million military soldiers that died and 7 million civilian deaths. 21 million were wounded and nearly 8 million either went missing or were imprisoned.