German Literature

The Road Back

Der Weg zurück (1931) The Road Back

Der Weg zurück / The Road Back is a sequel to All Quiet on the Western Front. It is a Heimkehrerroman (homecoming novel) about the experiences of the front soldiers after the war has ended. The sequel is narrated by a new character, Ernst Birkholz. Only one character, Tjaden, has survived from the previous novel; he marries a butcher’s daughter in order to avoid the food rationing which is still in force. The novel explores how the veterans struggle to readjust to civilian life, against the background of the German Revolution of 1918.

In the prelude (Eingang), the soldiers sense that the war will be over soon, however one of their comrades, Wessling, a farmer, is killed. Lieutenant Heel doesn’t want the war to end and claims that the peace will be dirty.

In Part One, the men meet some American soldiers who are friendly; one of them can even speak German and has been in Dresden. The Kaiser has fled to Holland and the men remark that if they had tried to flee from the war, they would have been shot. An argument takes place between Lt. Heel and Max Weil, a Jewish soldier. Heel claims that heroism is more important than anything else including reason. Weil says the commanding officers bear a terrible responsibility. The soldiers are demobbed and bid farewell to each other. Ominously, the narrator’s friend Weddekamp tells him: ‘der Krieg ist noch nicht zu Ende.’ (the war is not over yet).

In Part Two, the men return home to Osnabrück and struggle to readjust to civilian life. Kosole takes his revenge against Seelig, a former sergeant who is now an innkeeper again. The narrator, Ernst Birkholz, attends a dinner party hosted by his rich uncle Karl.

In Part Three, the narrator visits an old comrade, Adolf Bethke, who returned home to find that his wife Marie had cheated on him while he was away. Bethke is devastated and struggles to forgive his wife. The narrator’s mother is shocked to hear him swear. To her, he is still her child, in the war she worried about the dangerous beasts trying to take his life. It never occurred to her that he too was a dangerous beast: ‘ihr ist nie der Gedanke gekommen, daß dieses bedrohte Kind eine ebenso gefährliche Bestie für die Kinder anderer Mütter war’ (p. 157; it never occurred to her that her threatened child was just as much a dangerous beast for the children of other mothers).

In Part Four, the veterans go back to school to take their final exams. They visit a comrade, Giesecke, who has shell shock and is now in a mental institution. The narrator meets Adele, a girl he used to like, but realises that he cannot go back to his previous life. Georg Rahe decides to rejoin the army.

In Part Five, Adolf Bethke has forgiven his wife Marie. The narrator, Ernst Birkholz, quits his job as a teacher. His sheepdog Wolf survives a vicious attack from another dog and starts to herd sheep.

In Part Six, the narrator’s friend Ludwig Breyer is diagnosed with syphilis. A procession of disabled veterans takes place. The Reichswehr – under the command of Lt. Heel – open fire on the crowd of civilians and Max Weil is killed. The friends head to Café Gräger, where the black marketers do their business. Albert Troßke finds his girlfriend Lucie in a state of undress with another man, Bartscher, and shoots him.

In Part Seven, Albert’s trial takes place. Georg Rahe has quit the army and returns to the battlefield in Flanders to visit the graves of his fallen comrades.

‘Vor diesen Kreuzen kracht das ganze Gebäude der großen Worte und Begriffe zusammen.’ (p. 360)

(In the face of these graves the whole edifice of grand words and concepts comes crashing down).

In the denouement (Ausgang), a new generation of cadets are preparing for war. Willy makes a brilliant speech and the narrator finally gains some insight into his situation.

German Edition

Erich Maria Remarque, Der Weg zurück (Cologne: Kiepenheuer & Witsch, 2025)