"All Quiet on the Western Front" is one of the most substantial war novels of all time. Written in 1929, the book is about Paul Baumer, the narrator, and his fellow classmates who enlist in the German army during World War 1. These young men become fervent soldiers, but they are soon to realize that their lives will be changed. Erich Maria Remarque, the author, wrote this novel over his experience as a soldier and the emotional abuse he went through. The novel diligently chronicles the mindset of a soldier in World War I while also simultaneously detailing the horrors of battle. The soldiers in All Quiet on the Western Front depict relations with soldiers in real life by their comradeship, psychological issues, and isolation from the real world.
One might say nothing auspicious ever comes out of war, but in this case, a positive aspect would be comradeship. Comradeship is a laudable and strong bond that one can anticipate the death of another soldier to trigger a vigorous emotive reaction from others. Both soldiers in real life and in the novel depict these actions. As a soldier going to war or fighting in Afghanistan or even Iraq, you approach the line with the rest of the comrades who also enlisted. While combating, these men experience dreadful sights of violence, and they automatically become scarred and damaged. They have no family or close friends to succor their hardships and distress, therefore confide into their fellow comrades. In the novel, Paul states "We are two men, two-minute sparks of life; outside is the night and the circle of death." (Remarque 94). As Paul ogles Kat roasting a goose, he quickly stops thinking about the terrors of the day, and reminisces Kat's voice, bringing him peace and reassurance. Through thick and thin, horror and hopelessness, battle and rest, these men sustain each other and build a brotherhood. Mark Twain writes, "Grief can take care of itself, but to get the full value of joy you must have somebody to divide it with.