⭕ General Overveiw. ⭕
German author Erich Maria Remarque's work All Quiet on the Western Front was released in the US as All Quiet on the Western Front and in the German language as Im Westen nichts Neues in 1929. This antiwar book, which takes place in the midst of World War I, uses Remarque's own wartime experiences to illustrate the general disillusionment of the time. The main focus of the book, which recounts Paul Baumer's brief military service and his experiences in combat, is the impact that war has on young men. Its title, written in the vernacular of regular communiqués, sums up its casual, concise approach, which clearly captures the horrors of war on a daily basis in a quiet, understated manner.
Its reticence to declare openly that it supported or opposed war stood in stark contrast to the patriotic rhetoric that was popular at the time, particularly in Germany. The book received a lot of detractors, yet it was an instant hit throughout the world.
⭕ Plot summary ⭕Spoiler !!!
All Quiet on the Western Front tells the story of a group of young Germans who enlist in World War I after being captivated by slogans of patriotism and honour. It is narrated by the protagonist, Paul Baumer, who is 20 years old. The young men soon learn that the romanticized version of war that was described to them is nothing like the battlefields they encounter. The novel opens with the group having just been relieved from their position on the front lines. Kemmerich, one of Paul’s classmates, has suffered a wound in his thigh that resulted in amputation, and some of the soldiers go to visit him in St. Joseph’s hospital. They quickly realize that Kemmerich will die there, and Müller, another of the soldiers, asks Kemmerich for his boots, a moment that is discomforting but irreproachably logical. Paul visits Kemmerich again, alone, and during this visit Kemmerich dies; Paul calls out for help, and a doctor refers him to an orderly. No one, however, provides any aid, because the staff is more concerned with preparing the soon-to-be-empty bed for a new patient. Kemmerich becomes the 17th soldier to die that day, and his body is quickly removed.
Paul and his friends, hungry and tired, are delighted when their friend Katczinsky (“Kat”) returns after a search for food with two loaves of bread and a bag of raw horsemeat. Kat, Paul explains, has always been uncannily resourceful. Paul also introduces the cruel drill sergeant Himmelstoss, a former postman with whom Paul and his friends are frequently in conflict. After spending some time relieved from the front line, their regiment is called up once again. When night comes, they fall asleep to the sound of exploding shells. When they awake, they hear sounds of an impending attack. Wails of wounded horses pierce the silence between explosions, and the gory sight of their injuries unsettles everybody deeply. Soon after, an attack is launched, and chaos ensues. Poison gas and shells infiltrate the group. When the fighting finally stops, the carnage is gruesome. The trenches are bombarded a number of times as the novel continues, until finally the soldiers are sent off-duty to take a break while they await reinforcements. Himmelstoss, who had recently made his first appearance in the trenches, makes efforts to get along better with the group. While bathing in a canal, Paul and some of his friends encounter three French girls, who they sneak out at night to meet. Paul then learns that he has been granted 17 days of leave. When he gets home, he learns that his mother has cancer. He feels disconnected from people he once felt close to, and he cannot understand the things that occupy their minds. He visits Kemmerich’s mother, who questions him about her son’s death. After a difficult conversation with his own mother, Paul wishes he had never come on leave, believing that he has changed far too much to live as he once did.
Paul next spends four weeks at a training camp before heading back to the front. Across from the base is a camp for Russian prisoners; Paul witnesses and ruminates on how similar his enemies look to his neighbours. He eventually returns to his regiment. He and his friends are given new clothing in preparation for a visit from someone implied to be the German emperor William II, referred to in the novel as the Kaiser, who will be doing an inspection. After the Kaiser leaves, Paul becomes lost at night during battle and, while hiding in a shell hole during a bombardment, stabs a French soldier who falls in. He watches as the man dies, desperately trying to help him by giving him water and dressing the wound he inflicted. When the man dies, Paul is delusional with shame. He finds a picture of the man’s wife and child in his breast pocket along with letters. He waits in the hole with the dead man for hours upon hours, until he feels it is safe enough to return to his regiment’s trench. ......
