Hroors of War

In “All Quiet on the Western Front,” Erich Maria Remarque tells the a story of six young German men who volunteer as soldiers in World War I. Remarque himself fought in World War I, but because of injuries that he sustained in battle, he was forced to withdraw from the war zone. He spent the rest of the war in the hospital, where he reflected upon the true nature of war. The novel is told from the viewpoint of one young soldier named Paul Baumer. Through the character of Baumer, Remarque portrays his innocence, childhood, and glory; it also portrays his horror, fears, and experiences in the war.

In the story, six close friends are persuaded to fight for their country by Kantorek, their schoolteacher, who believes enlisting is an honorable thing to do. After reaching the battlefront, one of Paul’s friends, Kemerich is injured. Kemerich has his leg amputated, but never recovers from the wounds and eventually dies. The outcome of these deaths makes them constantly fear for their lives and this calamity also cause the friends to realize that war is a physical terror. Consequently, when Paul goes home, he feels lost, and distressed around others. He wishes he had never come home. One day, after returning from home to the battlefront, Paul is hiding in to protect himself when an enemy soldier arrives. Paul panics and kills him. After killing the soldier, he’s frightened even more shows remorse to the dead body. At the end, the majority of Paul’s friends have died one after another. Only Paul and his best friend Kat remain alive. Consequently, when Kat dies, it shocks Baumer, feels left alone. Finally, one day near the end of the war, an enemy soldier shoots and kills Paul.

The novel presents several themes, one of which is “Loss of I...

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...ome aspect of war, from battling with enemies to how battle spiritually destroys young men. The one positive point of this novel is how friends cared for one another when going through tragedies and stressful experiences. It also portrays how strong a soldier needs to be, in order for them to be in the war.

To sum up, Remarque wrote, “All Quiet on the Western Front,” to inform the reader about the unromantic and the painful reality of war. These young men in the story got themselves into, from suffering horrific injuries, attacks and abuse, to losing their innocence and ability to live peaceful lives as civilians at home who demonstrates Remarque's conviction of the truth about war. Remarque's personal experiences and reflections on war, as presented in this book, are a warning to other innocent young men who may fall prey to the false notion of war as glorious.