All Quiet on the Western Front

                We have all had hard times and been in places that we haven’t wanted to be in. With war being one of the most extreme circumstances. In the book All Quiet on the Western front you follow a soldier during the Great War which is most commonly known now as World War I. Paul Braumer is the main character that the story focuses on in his travels through the war with the eight remaining men from his regiment.

                The novel uses the mass carnage and brutal truth of war to depict how it can change people. One of the biggest being through the in bedded feeling of nationalism the was pounded in to the minds of the troops that were to fight on the front lines. It also uses symbolism to show the effects war has on people. One of the biggest uses of symbolism is actually in the first portion of the book, it happens when Kemmerich’s who is one of the friends in the group is laying on his death bed in a field hospital. His belongings in a bin under his bed which among them being a fresh pair of boots, in the mist of what was one of the deadliest wars they begin to let it take effect of them. As can be seen the worry of their friend is masked by their natural state of wanting anything that could give them an edge. A new pair of boots in that time was major due to the fact that in the late part of WWI in the German trenches some men didn’t even have boots. So it shows that in a dog eat dog world such as a major war it can change a person. Prior to the war Paul and his friends wouldn’t have even considered Kemmerich’s boots but more worried about his wellbeing. It emphasizes that war can bring out the most primal instincts due to the fact that any day could be your last and you have to take advantage of what you can.

                Nationalism is also beaten in to the heads of Paul and his friend as he speaks of the groups time in boot camp before they were deployed. The commanding officer that they had was given the label of the harshest of all the officers, his name is Corporal Himmlestoss. Himmlestoss is described as a small man with a napoleon complex, he was super tough on Paul and his friends due to their personalities being hard headed. All the way through the war until the end he maintains this toughness on the guys making sure that they stay alive. Towards the end of the war he tried to make amends with the guys though since he knew that the odds of making it out alive were very slim.

                All though war is a devastating thing the book also tries to make it seem like a great thing as it shows pride in one ‘s country. That then revolves around the nationalistic part of the book, It tries to say that yes war isn’t good but it’s alright if you’re doing it for the good of the country. In a way the book wants to show the gory and brutal part of war that changes people while also saying yes it changed them but it’s that they did it since it was for their country. I think that a big support for the book was that World War I was the first war that really gave people a look at the truth behind what war really is, therefore the explanation of the events in the book were a lot easier because the people reading the book understood what was being portrayed better.

                Kantorek who was a teacher prior to the war was very interested in politics and speeches, he was also probably the biggest factor for Paul and others joining the war. He basically bombarded them with political speech that gave them a heightened sense of pride for their country which led them to want to fight. With it being added that Paul and his friends were German soldiers it is well known that Germany was very nationalistic and socialistic in their ideals with both wars. So you can see with this book being originally written by a German author in 1920 how it could focus on war politics due to the fact they had to recruit all the men they could to support their military for the invasions that they did that were one of the big factors in the start of WWI.

                In conclusion All Quiet on the Western Front is a great read for anyone who is into war stories or politics, the main focuses being the gory and brutal truth of what war is and how it changes people. Along with that are the politics and nationalistic ideals that are used to mask the effects of war on the soldiers who fight it by making them seem as tools in a great cause to increase the achievements of their country.