“What use is it, absolutely nothing, eh, war” (Edwin Starr). The horror of war, the effects of war on the soldier, and nationalism are all themes in "All Quiet on the Western Front." World War I is basically about the war that began with the killing of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The war then escalated between 28 countries. The novel is about a boy named Paul and his school friends who were all convinced to enlist to fight in the First World War. Paul and his company know nothing about what war is really like. They know nothing of the horrors of war. What is war really like all together? What makes war so horrible? The horror of war is present throughout All Quiet on the Western Front. For example, Albert says that the war ruined them when they were young and Paul agrees. “Albert expresses it: "The war has ruined us completely." He's right. We are no longer young. We don't want to take the world by storm. We're running away. We fly by ourselves. From our life. We were eighteen years old and had begun to love life and the world; and we had to tear it apart. The first bomb, the first explosion, exploded in our hearts. We are cut off from activity, from effort, from progress. We no longer believe in these things, we believe in war." (Observation, chapter 5). The way the war affected each soldier changed them forever. The kids who were once schoolchildren will never be the same again. Paul and his company were once aspiring young men who had just graduated high school and thought they had a wonderful life. Sometimes things don't always go the way you want. The effects of war on a soldier are another major theme of the novel. Paul describes how they have changed and how death no longer touches them. “We have become wild beasts. We don't fight, we defend... middle of paper... we give you a different perspective of what it was like for a German during the First World War. Most of the books you read only tell the other side of the coin, not the feelings of the Germans. All in all war is unnecessary and can be avoided if everyone looks back at all that has happened in all the wars fought, all the lives lost and all the horror and terror that has befallen all the families and Soldiers, why are we still fighting? Works Cited Remarque, Erich Maria and AW Wheen. All quiet on the Western Front. Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 1929. Print.Shmoop Editorial Team. "All quiet on the Western Front." Shmoop.com. Shmoop University, Inc., November 11, 2008. Web. May 20, 2014."All Quiet on the Western Front." SparkNote. SparkNotes and Web. May 23, 2014."All quiet on the Western Front." LitCharts. Np, nd Web. May 23 2014.