All Quiet On The Western Front Book Summary
My knowledge of World War One was solely built on the works of European writers, which I had a chance to read in high school and university. The books such as All Quiet on the Western Front by German writer Erich Maria Remarque, Death of a Hero by English poet Richard Aldington, Doctor Zhivago by Russian novelist Boris Pasternak and The Good Soldier Švejk by Czech satirist Jaroslav Hašek shaped my view on the subject, giving me a chance to see the history from many different perspectives. However, only this semester, taking the course with professor Gendal, I finally got an opportunity to learn about American view on this historic event. Among all the books we have read, Company K by William March stood out the most; this book got my full attention from the first page. Company K is an intense
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At the beginning of the book private Archie Lemon thinks about the war that suppose to “end injustice,” and that he doesn't mind getting killed, because the people coming after him will live in “happiness and peace” (23). Such a false propaganda is recognized by soldiers fifty pages later. They realize that the war “was brought about moneyed interests for its own selfish ends,” because idealism and patriotism have nothing to do with the war. They call it brutal and degrading, and, “fools who fight, are pawns shoved about to serve the interest of others” (96). March in the 30s recognizes of what the war becomes in the twenty first century; a character name Sergeant Theodore Donohoe back then sees the war as a business (because today it is fought for the territory or land resources); he states that in order to get anywhere in it, one has to adjust oneself to its peculiarities and “play the cards the way they fall” (30). Unfortunately, not a lot of soldiers have learned or will ever learn how to play this game
At the beginning of the book private Archie Lemon thinks about the war that suppose to “end injustice,” and that he doesn't mind getting killed, because the people coming after him will live in “happiness and peace” (23). Such a false propaganda is recognized by soldiers fifty pages later. They realize that the war “was brought about moneyed interests for its own selfish ends,” because idealism and patriotism have nothing to do with the war. They call it brutal and degrading, and, “fools who fight, are pawns shoved about to serve the interest of others” (96). March in the 30s recognizes of what the war becomes in the twenty first century; a character name Sergeant Theodore Donohoe back then sees the war as a business (because today it is fought for the territory or land resources); he states that in order to get anywhere in it, one has to adjust oneself to its peculiarities and “play the cards the way they fall” (30). Unfortunately, not a lot of soldiers have learned or will ever learn how to play this game