All Quiet on the Western Front: Soldiers in War Fought for Survival
All Quiet on the Western Front “Little souls who thirst for fight, these men were born to drill and die” (Crane 7-8). Stephen Crane’s poem acknowledges the fact that many soldiers in the war have fought for survival, dehumanized, and lost lives for their country. Many propose the idea that war is not necessary and that it is pointless. This is quite ironic since a great amount of people go to war even though they think that it is unnecessary. Generally, these battles can be prevented after all most people would say that war is a tragic thing and that it shouldn’t play such a big role in life. Author of an international bestselling novel All Quiet on the Western Front, Erich Maria Remarque also portrays a similar purpose in his novel as Stephen Crane’s poem “War is Kind”. Remarque and Crane both want to convey a message of harmony by distinctly delineating the destructiveness, dehumanization, and the ridiculousness of war. Remarque presents his novel showing readers how the soldiers feel when battling in this war. Tjaden, one of the main characters in the novel says, “Then what exactly is war for? […] there must be some people to whom the war is useful. Well I’m not one of them, not you, nor anybody else here” (Remarque 205). Tjaden makes a clear point that him and his friends do not want to be here fighting this war, not to mention that by him asking the question of “what is war for?”, shows that he doesn’t even know why he’s here and has to face all these destructions. Albert, another main character in this novel adds, “We didn’t want the war, the others say the same thing-and yet half the world is in it all the same” (Remarque 206). This shows irony because it clearly states that if the others say that they don’t want war, then why be in it and make such a big sacrifice? It all contradicts itself and brings one to the point that war is an act of stupidity. Crane presents his poem “War is Kind” in a similar way as Remarque’s novel to