All Quiet on the Western Front Research Paper

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The men in All Quiet On the Western Front have experienced this unethical fever of war first hand.

As a symbol of villainy, Kantorek and Himmelstoss, represent the murderous government of early twentieth century Germany. (Firda 2136) They recruited innocent young boys into the army without regard for their well being or informing the boys of the truths behind what they are getting into. The moral code of Kantorek, Himmelstoss, and the many others like them is quite blurry.

The morale of the soldiers of the armies just might be the simplest of all. They are all set on survival. Beginning with the veterans, the simple goal is passed down the ranks. (Firda 2136). Surviving at all costs can arouse an unethical path. A man might do anything to get home. Such as: when Paul kills a frenchman without hesitation just out of fear of being the one killed. “I do not think at all, I make no decision--I strike madly at home, feel only how the body convulses, then becomes limp, and collapses” (Remarque 216). It is a brutal reality that Paul Baumer lived.

Throughout the story, death is hinted at. For when Paul encounters unearthed corpses, it reminds the reader of the bizarre characteristics of “The Great War”. Also, anticipating Baumer’s death in the end. (Ware 99). When Baumer goes on leave, is another hint that he can not return to his old life. “I find I do not belong here any more, it is a foreign world” (Remarque 168). The brutality which he has witnessed in that unethical war has put him over the edge of normality. Paul can no longer relate nor comprehend the simple life of civilians. Even though it tears him up, he accepts the facts of his situation.

War is something that pits strangers with no beef against each other. “I know nothing of them except that they are prisoners; and that is exactly what troubles me” (Remarque 193). The men fighting one another are only enemies through war. Perhaps if the men had met at any other occasion, they could have even been friends. Instead, a group of nineteen year olds, are forced to grow up as fast as they get through training to fight a similar group from a different country.

All Quiet On the Western Front demonstrates the brutalities, ethics, and morale of war with figures such as: boots, villains, women, and foreshadowing. “his face had an expression of calm, as though almost glad the end had come” (Remarque 296). War pushes people to do unthinkable acts as well as walk a fine line between survival and death. Paul Baumer, his comrades, and their families are the fictional examples of real life people that are continuously affected by war.