The greatest war novel of all time, All Calm on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque, is a novel that depicts the difficulties of a group of teenagers enlisted in the German army. Army during the First World War. Enlisting right out of high school forced teenagers into experiences they never expected. From the life of a soldier on the front lines to the turmoil of family life, the war had managed to destroy a group of teenagers once again. Throughout the novel, we have seen the men of the Second Company adapt to the harsh conditions of war and combat. the front line. Initially, the men were going to raise the front line. The situation having been fairly calm for them, the quartermaster requisitioned the normal quantity of rations for an entire company of one hundred and fifty men. On the last day the Company was in the front line, a number of English heavyweights opened on them with high explosives. This resulted in a severe loss and the Second Company returned with only eighty men. Each morning the men received a ration of sausages and bread, as well as five cigars, ten cigarettes and a chewing quid. The men of the Second Company realized that because of their fallen comrades, they could possibly get double rations. Even though the cook didn't want to serve the leftovers to the men, they fought with him until he finally relented. The men were happy to receive a double ration of food as well as a double ration of cigarettes. The loss of more than half their business didn't even deter the men. Knowing only war, men got used to facing death. All they cared about was receiving their double ration. Being at war had stripped them of all the innocence that Paul and his classmates had left. Another example of how difficult things are...... middle of paper ...... session. Paul was overwhelmed by being at home. The only thing everyone wanted to talk about was the war. No one understood that because Paul faced this problem every day, he didn't want to talk about it. His mother was one of the people who asked him about the war. “Was it very bad there, Paul?” (P. 161) Paul simply had no words to begin to describe his experiences. He lied and told his mother it wasn't a big deal. While Paul was at home, he learned that his mother had fallen ill and that the civilian population was beginning to starve. One day, while walking the streets, Paul met an older man who happened to be a major. Paul didn't recognize him so he didn't greet him. The older gentlemen were outraged and forced him to walk down the street and salute sharply. From then on, he wore civilian clothes when in public.