All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque, told the story of the harsh times during the two years immediately before the Armistice ended World War I in November 1918. The story begins in the year of 1916; World War I had been already underway for two years. From the launch of these horrible times, World War I was fought in two main areas, named for their geographical affiliation to Germany. The Eastern Front extended into the vast country of Russia, and the Western Front extended through Belgium and into Northern France. The main character and narrator of the book is a young man named Paul Baumer who is a 19-year-old private in the German armed forces. Paul joined the army when a recruiter named Kantorek pumps him and his friends full of honor and glory. Honor and glory they could receive by signing up. Paul is ecstatic that he is going away to war.
             Once he arrives at the front he begins to recognize the "terrible thing called war." He realizes that this glorious war isn't all glory; there is also demise and annihilation. Paul learns to cope with the deaths of all his friends and how to maintain his mind clear without turning into a vicious animal. One of the main issues in this novel was Kemmerich's big leather boots. At his death, everybody was bickering over who would receive them. Remarque shows you the pettiness between excellent friends because of war. Remarque somewhat inserts these themes, others are about how horrible war really was at that time, also friendship is a necessity to stay alive on the battleground, and how World War I shattered a generation. During the time period of All Quiet on the Western Front, the Russian were rebelling against Czar Nicholas II. He and his whole family were eventually killed, and so began communist Russia. Also throughout this time, European countries were colonizing Asia and Africa which was one of the many causes of World War I. The Ottoman Empire collapses and the Model T ...