List of important characters and my interpretation

Important characters:

1. Paul Bäumer: Narrator and main character in the novel. The book is told from his point of view and the struggles he goes through.
2. Stanislaus Katczinsky: Paul's best friend in the army. Has been enlisted longer than Paul has and helped him [Paul] and the remainder of the second company overcome the initial terror of trench warfare. He also found many supplies that without, would have caused harder times on the men.
3. Albert Kropp: Intelligent and skeptical classmate of Paul's that questions the causation of the war. Paul's best friend aside from Kat.
4. Müller: Paul's classmate that keeps looking beyond the war for what him and his comrades would do.
5. Tjaden: Constantly hungry bed wetter and classmate of Paul's. Enlisted alongside Paul and served alongside him until Paul was killed.
6. Kantorek: The school teacher that brainwashed them into enlisting for honor and glory.
7. Corporal Himmelstoss: A postman that was a training officer and let the power go to his head. Tried to make amends with the company he abused so much in training when he went to the front himself and fought a skirmish.
8. Gérard Duval: A French printer that Paul kills in No Mans Land. Has a wife and daughter that Paul promises to write to in his panic driven grief.
9. Franz Kemmerich: Classmate of Paul's. Gets a minor wound and contracts gangrene. Dies shortly thereafter in the hospital.
10. Detering: A comrade of Paul's. Owns a farm and has a wife. He longs to be back home.

 All Quiet on the Western Front is probably the best war book ever written. It wonderfully illustrates just how harsh the war is on a soldier. Through the book, Paul notes on numerous occasions when he is not on the front line just how different things are and how nothing brings him joy or comfort. He feels distant from everyone except the men in his company who understand his thoughts and feelings. Among his family, he loves them but is unable to relate to them any longer, and as such prefers the company of himself over spending time with his siblings or parents. Contact with those who aren't serving in the war are next to infuriating for him. He is told he doesn't understand because he only sees a single slice of the battle, whereas someone in the back can see the whole picture. The difference of war veterans who have seen combat versus those who haven't been in the army is so drastic in terms of how they can communicate that even family can seem like distant strangers. Remarque does a wonderful job showing this.