Analysis Of Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet On The Western Front

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The quotations “We are old folk” (Remarque 18) “The war has ruined us for everything” (Remarque 87) and “Young innocents” (Remarque 73) in the novel All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque profoundly expresses not only how the writer feels about the war, but a major theme communicated to us throughout the entire book. Remarque repetitively describes the effect of the war on the soldiers using words like “ruined” and “old”, showing the emotional, physical and psychological damage in the soldiers. Paul Baumer, a 19 year old, describes himself and his friends of the same age as “old folk”. This phrase is used as a metaphor to express how despite their young age, the sheer experience and trauma brought on by the intensities of