My critical analysis is on the book titled, All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque. I will analyze how his experience as a soldier on the front lines in World War I profoundly influences his outlook in life and his desire to convey the reality of war, and its lasting effects on society. Erich Maria Remarque was born on June 22, 1898 in Osnabrück, Germany. He was of French ancestry, but was "Germanized" in the 1800s. In his school years at Johannisschle, his friends said that he was "always the best in class" meaning he was motivated and intelligent. After his schooling in Johannisschle, he applied to the University of Münster where his education was interrupted because of World War I and was drafted into the German army when he turned 18 years old. He trained at a boot-camp on Lüneburg Heath before he was sent to the Western Front. After World War I ended, he did not resume his education but instead he held a series of jobs ranging from race-car driver, teacher, and sports writer but never settled on one occupation. He …show more content…
I believe the war profoundly affected Erich Remarque because after the war he was a changed man. He could not hold a steady job, and his outlook in life changed (don’t take life for granted). If the war had not occurred, one would assume Erich would have finished his university education. He would hold a steady job, get married, have a family, and be concerned with the chores of the daily life. Instead, he grew up on the battlefield. His body changed physically from a teen into a full-grown man. The horrors of combat in the battlefield had mentally scared him and changed his perspective on life. He found life to be fragile, nothing good came out of war but death, destruction, and a lost generation. He was traumatized by the horrors of war and felt compelled to write about how horrific the war was and its lasting effects on