All Quiet On The Western Front War Analysis

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War and violence can alter one's innocence and future, which is seen in Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front. This novel expresses the true terrors of war, and how war can ruin a young man’s life. Paul Baumer, the narrator, has had his life war-torn because of the emotional grief carried with being a soldier. War and violence have caused Paul and his comrades to have their innocence and youth killed, along with their hope for a life in the future. Most people consider their youth as the most innocent and pleasant years of their life, which can be crushed at the hands of war and violence. One example is when Kantorek, Paul and his comrades’ school teacher, swindles his students into having national pride and convincing them they are “iron youth” …show more content…
Also, Paul loses innocence because he came into the war full of innocence, and the way Paul can go from there is down, especially when men are dying left and right. Another example is when sergeant Ollrich is shooting British soldiers on the front line with a sniper. He hits an enemy soldier and turns around “proudly” to “score his point” as if shooting men is a game (228). Sergeant Ollrich is reduced to making himself a mass killer, and shoots many people for sport. He tallies his kills, hoping to be the leader of the group by the end of the day. This destroys Paul’s innocence because Paul sees men shooting other men for pride, joy, and sport. Killing men for sport is like hunting deer, and keeping the antlers, but instead of keeping antlers, but instead of keeping antlers to commemorate the deer, the man is remembered only as a tally mark. Another example of loss of innocence is when Paul and his comrades are in the midst of a bombing. Paul is sitting in a dug-out playing skat” and decides “to visit some friends in another dug-out” (101). Upon Paul’s return, “Nothing more was to be seen of