Arch of Triumph (1946)

ספרו העצוב מריר של רמרק ( )

Love in the shadow of war. This is the basic premise of Erich Maria Remarque’s tragic romance, Arch of Triumph, 1945, Appleton-Century Co; but if you pass over this remarkable work as just another in a long line of slobbering, pointless and uninspiring love stories you will only cheat yourself of a moving and compelling narrative that starts off slowly, imperceptibly envelops you; then, reaches out and sucks you in.

It is a story of two lost and lonely people, brought together by chance who unexpectedly find love. But while love can solidify, redeem and renew the soul; while love can give the affected the strength to combat the elements and achieve unparalleled heights of tenderness, sacrifice, bravery and accomplishment; love itself, can be fragile, and under the weight of the Nazi threat is their love strong enough to survive fate, war, circumstance and the emotional scars of their collective past?

Once a respected surgeon in Germany, Ravic, his alias, has become a man without a country; an illegal refugee, living on the fringe of society; reduced to living for the moment and earning a living by clandestinely performing complicated surgeries for lesser doctors in France. Ravic is also harboring a deep seated hatred and an unquenchable desire for revenge against a German officer who tortured him and drove his girlfriend to commit suicide.

One night he meets a woman, Joan Madou, a singer with a troubled past of her own.
Remarque’s account of Madou’s past is quite cryptic and vague. This skillful omission only enhances the story as it enables us discover whom Joan is as Ravic does.
While the story centers on the two main characters, it chronicles life in France the uneasiness of its inhabitants under the cloud of possible war and the plight of refugees fleeing German oppression and atrocities shortly before the start of WWII.

Remarque’s descriptive writing style brings pre-war France, from its gleaming hotels and exciting nightlife, to its lurid brothels, vividly to life. Even his description of the many operations Ravic performs throughout the story are described with such intricate eloquence that you feel as if you are actually watching them from the observation room.

Remarque, who’s earlier novel, All quite on the Western Front, would become a staple in the literary world and fodder for book burning parties throughout Nazi Germany, once again shared his passionate anti-war position with his readers. The Remarque philosophy of the senselessness and destructiveness of war; man’s inhumanity to man; the destructive nature of man’s unbridled lust for power and the catastrophic result of reckless ambition are all broached in this work; however, these timeless issues are never overdone or done heavy- handedly. Remarque does not preach, but skillfully incorporates these issues into a tight and engrossing fictional story that drips with a realism that grabs and holds your imagination, hopes and fears until the last page.

The author strips his narrative of romantic sentimentalism and in doing so give Ravic and Joan's relationship a genuine feel. One of the best aspects of this book is Remarque’s realistic description of the blissful highs devastating lows of love; especially love held hostage by world events and human frailty. Ravic knows that for a man living as he living, love is not an option, and has all but given up on love; but he is about to learn that love has never waited for an invitation. Joan is also in love. Joan has her own ideas about love, but they don't necessarily align with Ravic's.

While I would say that this book is primarily a love story, it is also a political, social and philosophical commentary. Arch of Triumph is simultaneously nostalgic and timely. The themes addressed in the story are still with us and just as relevant and important today as they were then. ( )

My favorite one. A great writer of the world war... E-MR built all his stories on the war, as he was part of the 'unfortunate' generation (born around 1900) that was old enough to be part of the first war... and then the second.
Still, all his books are as many love stories - sad though. In every book, at the very end - the woman dies somehow, leaving the man to face the war & crisis all by himself.
After reading this one - wishing to try calvados. Haven't tried it yet. ( )