Analysis of All Quiet on the Western Front Many war novels are written in an admirable way as if war as an act of valor and honor in which men sacrifice their lives for their country and for the greater good. All Quiet on the Western Front is a novel published in 1929 by Erich Remarque. This novel,contrasting many others, does not admire war, but speaks of itshorrors with unparalleled veracity. All Quiet on The Western Front is clearly an anti-war book as can be seen with Paul’s changing mindset preceding and during the war, descriptions of the cruelty of war, and Paul’s reaction to the death his friends. “Won’t you join up, Comrades?” (Remarque, 11) said Kantorek, who was Paul’s schoolmaster and had swayed Paul and his friends to go to the District Commandment and volunteer for the war. Paul and his friends were merely adolescents full of ignorance and innocence going straight from high school into an unknown environment full of death, despair, loneliness and hopelessness. They did not know what to expect from war, all they knew was that they were doing this for the good of the country they loved. It can be seen Paul was affected when he experienced the first bombardment and sees his fellow comrade Joseph Behm die during the attack and Paul and his troop are unable to help him. Paul learned to distinguish between …show more content…
Paul felt estranged being back in his hometown with his family. “You are at home, you are at home.” (Remarque, 160) Paul kept saying to himself. After his experiences in the war, he was so affected, that his reality of being at home with his family seemed like a hallucination to him. His only reality was a world of chaos and despair, and he could not understand how he was back at home with his family in a world of peace and tranquility, while his comrades were in the front fighting and dying for their