War does not determines who is right, only who is left. In All Quiet on the Western Front, a historical war novel, by Erich Maria Remarque, war is described realistically and losses were revealed. Earth and nature play huge roles among the wars; they both have opposite uses. For example, earth is both protection and danger as they seek refuge in it down within the trenches as the shells explode on the surface of it. As Paul travels through the horror and destruction of war, he realized the comfort brought to him by nature.
Earth might not have an significant effect in our lives, however, it has great impacts on soldiers. The earth shields exterior forces and acts as an protection, yet it is a battlefield where soldiers lose their lives. When Paul and his friends were preparing for a bombardment and hiding from possible attack, he realized …show more content…
Paul is defended by Earth’s motherly nature, just like how a womb protects a child, Earth protects its soldiers. When Paul was hiding during a bombardment he realized that Earth was his only protection, “...when he buries his face and his limbs deep in her form the fear of death by shell-fires, then she is his only friend, his brother, his mother; he stifles his terror and his cries in her silence and her security…”(55). Paul was comforted by Earth’s presence and it gave him security. People will only be grateful for what they have when they are on the brink of dying; Paul only realized the protection Mother Earth had gave him when he is scared of death. Similarly, Earth will also play a role in Paul’s death, it provides him a tomb. When Paul fell in 1918, he was peaceful as though he was resting, it was like a baby in his mother’s embrace. Through his journey of war, Paul experienced many horror and destruction of war, which leads to an exceptionally calm ending. Remarque described Paul’s death as “an expression of calm, as though almost glad the end had come”