Questions About All Quiet on the Western Front

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What kind of war book is this? I mean, is it WAR war, or is it the lives of people around the war?

Gerhard Venter I think this is where the phrase "lost generation" originated. A 19-year-old became a veteran soldier if he could survive the first couple of weeks in…moreI think this is where the phrase "lost generation" originated. A 19-year-old became a veteran soldier if he could survive the first couple of weeks in the trenches. This is not a rabid anti-war leaflet, but rather a description of how the hell of shelling, hunger, cold, rats, etc. changed a whole generation's lives and hollowed them out, so they became unable to feel or hope for anything after the war. A wounded kid did not know how to ask a female nurse to go to pee, because he didn't know how to speak civilly anymore … just read it!(less)

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I am young, I am twenty years old; yet I know nothing of life but despair, death, fear, and fatuous superficiality cast over an abyss of sorrow. I see how peoples are set against one another, and in silence, unknowingly, foolishly, obediently, innocently slay one another. What page?

Agnes Fontana In my edition 230.

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Can someone explain what the "territorials" were in the German army in WWI?

Ian It’s was/is a term used throughout Europe to denote, part time, volunteer military forces organized by regions of a country, hence the term “Territori…moreIt’s was/is a term used throughout Europe to denote, part time, volunteer military forces organized by regions of a country, hence the term “Territorials.” The moral equivalent of what we call in the US the National Guard.” That’s all nothing special about them just Soldiers, but generally considered less able than professional troops in frontline units and thus given more routine security missions within the country’s interior away from the front lines, Note they are tasked to guard Russian POWs in the book and Paul and his classmates are less than impressed, even offered that their school teacher who talked them into enlisting has jointed the Territorials. Note how they keep calling him “Territorial Kantorek,” it is meant to be mocking. Hope that helps. (less)

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should i start this book even tho i know nothing about ww1? or is there some another book i should read first to get some factual knowledge of the history? or is this book has it all?

Grant Metzger I knew little about WWI when I started this book (i.e. all I knew for a fact was it was that war Battlefield One was set in)(Well, maybe a little more…moreI knew little about WWI when I started this book (i.e. all I knew for a fact was it was that war Battlefield One was set in)(Well, maybe a little more then that). However, this isn't one of those books were the protagnosist stumbles from one major historical set piece to another alongside some famous general or what not, so little actual WWI knowledge is needed. In fact, I can sum up all the important bits right here-
1. The main charecter is a German soldgier (not a Nazi, though), so it is from the perspective of a soldgier allied with the Central Powers (i.e. Germany, Austria Hungary, Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria) who are fighting against the Allies (Britain, France, Russia, Italy, and the United States).
Yeah, that is basically all you need to know. In short, you can get through the entire book knowing literally nothing about WWI and still find it makes sense, though I would never discourage you from looking into it some more if you'd still like to (As for research matierlas to do so, I'm not an expert, but most internet articels I've read are pretty decent). Anyway, hope this helps. (less)

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Can someone explain to me the last part of the book? "the life that has borne me through these years is still in my hands and my eyes. Whether I have subdued it, I know not. But so long as it is there it will seek it's own way out, heedless of the will that is within me." It's such a great book, I just can't understand the last sentence.

Laura Keep going. There's another page after that. …moreKeep going. There's another page after that. (less)

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