Why were books like All Quiet on the Western Front written after World War 1, and was the author a pacifist?

Question

I have a midterm exam coming up and I know some of the answer to the second part of the question. But I have searched and searched for the answer to the first part and am coming up with nothing.

Answer 1

I think this kind of book grew out of a deep disillusionment with the world as it had existed up til then. Everyone thought the world was great, civilization was great and then the Great War happened. Not only did it wipe out an entire generation of young men, it destroyed the confidence of western civilization. Those who survived were changed, life would never be the same, the world would never be the same.

I believe that Remarque wrote it to express the feelings of those returning, that they had changed, they had seen things no one was meant to see. They had no connection to those who had not been at the front. He was trying to show those who had not seen, all the horror of the war.

I do not believe anyone could have gone through it and not become a pacifist.

Answer 2

Because the world had never seen war and devastation on such a great scale before. Because of the sheer size and destruction brought, it was named The War to End All Wars. many people were in shock over the carnage and dissilusioned by the politics and events which had led up to it. some expressed their dissilusionment by writing. Was the author a pacifist? Only he knows. he clearly extolls contempt for war in his book. I used to look at the characters as metaphors, the ideallistic, patriotic soldier who would represent the general public. At the beginning he has disdain for his Sergeant (who represents the government/political leaders) but also respect because, even though he is a taskmaster, he believes he has his best interest in mind. He comes to find out though, that the Sergeant is a bumbling fool, just existing in the world in which he in part created and everything he has taught about war turns out to be wrong. The title characters death is symbolic of the millions of youths and the lost generation which needlessly died in a war that started over nothing, solved nothing, and only laid the groundwork for World War II (which could be called World War 1, part 2).

Throughout history you can find similar authors/books with the same themes that are written after great conflicts. for example, there is the "Red Badge of Courage" which follows the American Civil War, or "For Whom The Bell Tolls" after the Spanish Civil War. In a nutshell they are all about idealism in the beginning with a realization that war is nothing more than a waste of promising life.