ipl-logo

The Effect Of War In All Quiet On The Western Front

1027 Words5 Pages

Herbert Hoover once said, “Older men declare war. But it is the youth that must fight and die.” This aphorism corresponds with the novel, All Quiet on the Western Front and the movie, “War Horse”. World War I, also known as the Great War or the War to End All Wars, however, despite its glorious names was neither great nor the last war. Two powerful and influential alliances fought on the battlefield until November 11, 1918, “a day that was so quiet and still on the whole front” (296). Many aspects of World War I are seen in Steven Spielberg's film, “War Horse” and Erich Maria Remarque’s novel, All Quiet on the Western Front. “War Horse” exhibits the struggles of those affected by the war through the eyes of a horse conscripted into World War …show more content…

In “War Horse”, Captain Nicholls and fellow cavalry officers prepared to ride into enemy territory and soon enough, most are shot down German machine guns. With all the new technology that was being used, the British and their horses were impotent. Paul and his friends line up to get breakfast, however the chef refuses saying he originally, “cooked for one hundred and fifty men”, but only eighty men were present to eat breakfast (4). These one hundred and fifty men fought for only a few days at the Front, yet half the company either died or are injured. This shows the readers how life can be taken away at any moment. Men as young as eighteen entered the war with hopes of winning for their country, but a staggering number of fifteen million men lost their lives. Notably, a year after Joey is in the war, Albert enlists along with a friend in hopes to reunite with Joey. In a deadly attempt Albert surprisingly succeeds in reaching the enemy trenches however, is met with poisonous gas. Though Albert succeeded, many soldiers lost in the race between life and death This bloody scene goes hand in hand with the killing of the new and inexperienced recruits in All Quiet on the Western Front. Paul explains how "[the] young recruits of course know none of these things. They get killed… [and] they are mown down” (130). Many did see to the end of the war, contributing to the increasing number casualties. Both the film and the novel correlated in depicting reality as well as the glorification of

Show More
Related
1458 Words | 6 Pages

The soldiers had been trained for an ideal war, and the one they were thrown into was far different. The once true ideals of the men were destroyed in the war, and eventually they like most men were killed. Men were like a number on the battlefield. People fought

Read More
403 Words | 2 Pages

War is a harsh reality that is inflicted upon the unwilling through the “need” of it’s predecessors and those whom wish it. All Quiet on The Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque is about 19 year old Paul and his friends in the “Second Company”. Even though they are just out of school age, they have already seen things that many could not bear to even think about. Eventually, all of his friends die, and even Paul too, dies. Remarque uses diction and syntax as literary devices to express his anti-war theme, or lesson.

Read More
803 Words | 4 Pages

The book is set out to describe the war but in the book we see how the basic needs of a human are changed during the war. These are food, sleep and body functions (toilets). The soldiers start to show a greater appreciation of these things where people back home did not it was just something they got. A good amount of food is not something they always had and the first example of this is right at the start of the book on page 10. When they loss nearly half their men they fail to tell the cook who cooks for 150 men they are quiet chuffed in the fact they now get nearly double rations.

Read More
842 Words | 4 Pages

The novel All Quiet on the Western Front Written by Erich Maria Remarque is not only a specific story of World War I, but also a criticism of the destruction and pointlessness of war. The book was banned in Nazi Germany because it was critical of German military, and the idea of the “Iron Youth”, a campaign that promoted patriotism and war to young men. The novel tells the story of soldiers who endure the terrors of battle, and shows how war destroyed and entire generation of men and irreversibly detached them from the normal world. Remarque uses his experience in the war to explain that the entire generation of “Iron Youth” were either dead after the World War I, or too separated from their previous lives after experiencing the hatred and

Read More
1820 Words | 8 Pages

All Quiet on the Western Front Essay World War I is one of the most influential and bloody wars in history. Soldiers did not always receive fair treatment, and often encountered harsh conditions, especially those men who were fighting on the front line. World War I took place between 1914-1919 (pbs), during which millions of lives were lost, and nearly everyone’s life was touched by the war in some way.

Read More
2161 Words | 9 Pages

In history, war has always been a mainstay and has always had significant impact. World War One, is one of the most tragic wars in all of history. And there are two sources that tell historical accounts of this war, through German, Indian, and British soldiers and their families. All Quiet on the Western Front and Indian voices of the Great War: Soldiers’ Letters. Both historical forms of literacy tell accounts of fiction characters, but real stories with profound impact.

Read More
961 Words | 4 Pages

Hardships faced in World War 1 War can be compared to an everlasting fever with tremendous side effects, no one, in particular, wants it, but, all at once there it is. Combat before World War 1 had the usage of inefficient had to hand weapons like knives and regular bayonets. Killing mass numbers of people was not as effective as during World War 1 as technology developed to kill more efficiently. Knives and bayonets turned into machine guns, slow marching troops were transported by tanks and submarines, poison gas and barbed wires replaced shields. The novel, ’All Quiet on the Western Front’, written by Erich Maria Remarque, who served in the German army during the war.

Read More
1296 Words | 6 Pages

The novel constantly refers to a time where the boys were in school learning about the war and having their teacher persuade them to enlist at such a young age. Once the boys have experienced war for a period of time, they realized that war is all the soldiers know. In the quote, “ I am young. I am twenty years old yet, I know nothing of life but despair, death, fear, and torture superficiality cast over an abyss of sorrow” ( Remarque 263 ).

Read More
820 Words | 4 Pages

But what else is similar between real and fiction and what is different? This comparative essay will review the similarities and differences between the actual war and the events that take place in the novel, All Quiet on the Western Front. This includes both the book and history confirm they had the use of trench warfare and the PTSD or “Shell Shock”that came

Read More
1384 Words | 6 Pages

Some spend months in the front, being bombed, shot at, and subjected to many very stressful events, causing so much psychological damage that they are tortured for the rest of their life. One event in the book shows a bombardment that lasts several days. After a while, the newer recruits start to show signs of collapse. They are overwhelmed, more scared than they have ever been, and are beginning to crumble. Some of the men feel as if they are suffocating, and would do anything to get out of the trap they are in.

Read More
1064 Words | 5 Pages

Throughout the ages, wars have wreaked havoc and caused great destruction that lead to the loss of millions of lives. However, wars also have an immensely destructive effect on the individual soldier. In the novel All Quiet on the Western Front written by Erich Maria Remarque, one is able to see exactly to what extent soldiers suffered during World War 1 as well as the effect that war had on them. In this essay I will explain the effect that war has on young soldiers by referring to the loss of innocence of young soldiers, the disillusionment of the soldiers and the debasement of soldiers to animalistic men. Many soldiers entered World War 1 as innocent young boys, but as they experienced the full effect of the war they consequently lost their innocence.

Read More
1289 Words | 6 Pages

Erich Maria Remarque 's descriptions, in All Quiet on the Western Front, show a disconnect from what troops thought war would be like and what their reality was. Through

Read More
1361 Words | 6 Pages

In All Quiet on the Western Front, Remarque exposes the reality of war by refuting the idea of the “Iron Youth,” revealing the mistreatment of soldiers, and showing the critical effects war imprints on them. When any war begins, young men are always the first ones to be sent into the war zones. To clarify, older generations believe young adults are the best options for fighting; these boys are strong, full of energy, and do not have anything to lose. “The chief source of this pro-war ideology were the older men of the nation: professors, publicists, politicians, and even pastors” (Literature and Its Times).

Read More
644 Words | 3 Pages

World War I, often dubbed the "Great War," summoned countless men to join the war effort in search of adventure, honor and camaraderie. However, the romanticized notions of glory and valor often clashed with the harsh reality of warfare. This essay aims to explore the actualities of life as a soldier during World War I such as the psychological toll it had on the soldiers as well as the harsh reality of trench warfare and camaraderie between soldiers and colleagues. Life in the trenches was a defining characteristic of World War I, but it was far from glorious. The physical conditions within the trenches were abysmal, leading to widespread discomfort, disease, and despair.

Read More
853 Words | 4 Pages

This has to be one of the most frightening things, to witness attacks and the death of your comrades, and not know which day may be your last. This novel portrays the Horrors of War extremely well and each horror is described so well that you can visualise the troubles that each soldier went

Read More

More about The Effect Of War In All Quiet On The Western Front

Related Topics

Open Document