All Quiet on the Western Front

In All Quiet on the Western Front, Remarque writes with a technique in which he jumps between ideas rather than relaying the story in a chronological matter. This technique enhances the telling of the war story with the idea that in war, points become more evident, and the main idea of the war itself is not just one linear story line. Battles, attacks, and bombardments stick out in the war timline, whereas the times of waiting, sleeping, or dying, seem to be less evident or blurry. The tone of the narrator, Paul, helps to establish a bitterness towards the fighting. This bitterness is caused by the change that has taken place within the young soldiers. These men have had no other life except for war, and they cannot understand or justify the reasons behind why they must do what they do. Their lives are predictable at points. They must parade, follow orders, and train for destruction; however, when they move out to the Front, everything changes. Remarque shifts between the Front, the memories of the soldiers, and training throughout this novel. The transition from the fighting to peace time and preparing demonstrates the psychological change that each of the young soldiers has undergone-from innocent, happy boys, to cold, bitter, killers, held together by their comaraderie. The tone that each of these soldiers speaks in is quite pessimistic. However, that could be expected from anyone who had to spend their days killing, so they would not be killed-watching their brothers die around them-surround by the dead, the rats, and blood. The imagery formed due to the graphic details that Remarque gives the reader, paints a sickeing picture. One of complete carnage and destruction.