Remarque put human face on pre WW2 Europe and France in particular.
The characters, their life stories and pre war spirit of that time builds up tension and anxiety in the reader. It is more than a love story.
In fact, I think love story is not central point of the book. It is there to examplify one of the inevitable feelings and to support the main underlying theme of how important human life is despite seeming small and insignificant in the face of upcoming tragedy of war. It is a story of the human heart in times where trust and love are questioned. The characters are memorable and stay with the reader long after the last page is read. The character of Ravic is a "ghost" surgeon performing for a small fee difficult operations of wealthy society doctors. He does not like what he has to do and he never seems to get used to the horrors of the world that exists around him. He is barely living, and only has an animal sense of survival. He has no papers, no real identity, and if he should get arrested, he will get deported as he has many times before.
Paris is known to be the "city of love". Ravic falls in love with a woman named Joan Madou in this city. Remarque, however, does not stress the fact that the characters are in Paris when they find love. It appears to be coincidental. This shying away from the stereotype sets Arch of Triumph aside from many novels set in this French capital. Ravic and Joan walk through Paris numerous times and see the Arch of Triumph shining. In the end of the story, though, as Ravic reveals his identity and is deported from the country, it is noted that "It was so dark that one could not even see the Arc de Triomphe"(Remarque 455). Ravic triumphs when he finds someone who loves him, but then he loses her. The Arch, which once symbolized triumph and hope, becomes an indication that Ravic's hope has died.
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