All Quiet on the Western Front Essay | Critical Essay #2

All Quiet on the Western Front Critical Essay #2

In the following essay, Henningfeld, an assistant professor of English at Adrian College, evaluates the roles of the secondary characters in Remarque's novel.

Erich Maria Remarque' s All Quiet on the Western Front has as its narrator the young German foot soldier, Paul Baumer. However, in addition to Paul, there are a number of other important characters who function in a variety of ways throughout the book. These secondary characters tend toward stereotypical representations of particular types Remarque wanted present in Ins account of life at the front.

The secondary characters can be grouped in several distinct categories. First, there are the young soldiers who were friends with Paul in school and decided to enlist at the same time. These include Muller, Albert Kropp, and Leer. The second group includes the friends of the schoolmates, Tjaden, Haie Westhus, and Stanislaus Katczinsky, called Kat. The third group of...
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