All Quiet on the Western Front is considered as best Anti war novel - Essay Example

What makes "All quiet on the western front" considered by many to be the best anti war novel so far written? Grade ’s Name (Feb. 14th, 2014) What makes "All quiet on the western front" considered by many to be the best anti war novel so far written? The World War I and World War II are the most prominent wars in the world that history shall forever narrate for centuries to come. These are the wars that pitched countries and their allies against the other countries they perceived as their enemies, with a complete intent to destroy them and leave them devastated for life. Consequently, many books have been written in this subject, and many narrations made from different perspective, based on which side of the divide the writers, narrators or the soldiers are engaging the wars from. Nevertheless, amongst all these books and narrations, "All quiet on the western front" still remains one of the best anti-war novels written so far. While this assertion might seem to be rather exaggerative, there is actually more truth in this observation, considering that as the Remarque & Wheen (2013) rightly puts it, as opposed to other books that have narrated, analyzed and dissected the same subject, this novel’s perspective is rather unique, in that it is not an accusation, and neither is it a “confession or an adventure, because no one can adventure with death” p2. The novel is a pure and balanced narration of a story of the soldiers engaged in the First World War, and as opposed to many other novels, books or stories written on the same subject, the novel simply leaves no details out, narrating the whole process from the entry and recruitment of the soldiers into the war, to the end of the war, when the soldiers, despite being young and in their twenties, were “already old and dead”p3. They were dead because they killed without adhering to their conscious, but following orders they were supposed to follow without questioning. The novel is simply a narration of the conditions of the soldiers, without praising or criticizing the bravery or failures respectively (Remarque & Wheen, 2013). It is this concept of purely balanced and non-biased intent of the book, which first presents it as the best anti-war novel so far written. Secondly, the novel emerges as unique sensitizer on how war can change man into a senseless and dangerous animal, not by choice but through being forced by circumstances, in a way rarely done by other novels, books or stories. The novel presents the value of every life, but in a sharp twist, clarifies that the only way for the soldiers to survive the battle front was to remain numb and insensitive, since if they did not kill, then they would automatically be killed (Remarque & Wheen, 2013). In affirming this point, the novel focuses on the shortcomings that the soldiers had to contend with. The soldiers were not trained since some came direct from school and different professions to join the war. Additionally, there was shortage of food in the battlefront, and the soldiers had to survive with or without food, with only one thing remaining constant; “random chances of death” p7. The death of soldiers on the battle front was nothing that could be regarded unusual. In fact, under the conditions in which the soldiers were serving, death was the only possibility, considering the “constant artirelly fire and bombardments that the soldiers had to contend with every single day” (Remarque & Wheen, 2013). Under such circumstances, the chances of death were much higher than the chances of survival. The random chances of life and death made it uncertain whether the soldiers would see another day, and while they had entered the war with the belief that they were taking a good course to save their country from the dangers of its enemies, the end feeling was totally different. The soldiers had entered the war young and strong, and with more dreams of victory ad better life thereafter, since they had “just started to love life” p.12. However, the situation changed for the soldiers, owing to the horrible conditions they faced and lived on the battle front, such that by the end of the war, those who were lucky to go home did not love life anymore, since they had shot the world they would have loved to see flourish into pieces. The novel portrays war as unnecessary evil that deprives humans of their empathy and freewill, and instead replace that with cruelty, numbness and insensitivity to life, traits that prompts man to destroy the world he otherwise cherished and loved to be part of, and to experience its love (Remarque & Wheen, 2013). While many books and novels that represent anti-war sentiments would seek to either condemn or praise the insensitivity or brevity of the soldiers involved in the war, this novel holds a noncommittal role towards praising or condemning them, leaving it for the world to analyze and then make a decision regarding war and its consequences. This way, the novel still stands out as one of the best anti-war novel so far written. Further, the novel’s anti-war sentiments are unique, since it focuses on the war and its implications from a purely humanitarian ground, with no further regard for the political, social or economic implication of the war (Remarque & Wheen, 2013). This makes the novel stand out as one of the best anti war-novel so far written, since many books, novels or stories that have been written in relation to the war have been looking at the war from different perspectives. Consequently, they lose the core focus of humans as the actual drivers and victims of the war, and not the economy or the political dynamics. From the novel, there is no glory and there is no victory. The only constant principle is sustaining life, because own-life is the only thing that meant anything to the soldiers on the battle front, and every act of killing and destruction was undertaken for the purpose of saving own-life (Remarque & Wheen, 2013). The war entailed killings and human-slaughter on a massive scale, and the impact of the re-entry of the soldiers into the society after the war was devastating to them, since they were greeted with un-acceptance, and there were no longer jobs for them. Further, the families that had lost their loved ones in the battle, perceived the soldiers coming back home as contributors, since they did not understand the conditions of the battlefront. The losers in the war were humans, and the winners were the barbed wire manufactures, who manufactured and sold more and more wire for use in barricades and trenches (Remarque & Wheen, 2013). Thus, the focus on the loss occasioned by the war as purely human is a unique way of looking at the effects of the war, making this novel the best anti-war novel so far written. Works Cited Remarque, E. M., & Wheen, A. W. (2013). All quiet on the western front: A novel. New York : Random House Trade Paperbacks Read More