ARCH of TRIUMPH

BY ERICH MARIA REMARQUE

A novel replete with ups and downs of romantic love, psychoanalysis of human emotions, and vivid descriptions of natural sceneries.

4 stars out of 5 stars

Although Arch of Triumph is the title of the novel, the Arch itself does not have much to do with the plot, other than the story was set in 1938-39 in Paris, just before the start of the Second World War. The central character was a Jewish German doctor named Ravic, who was tortured in a German concentration camp. He escaped to France and lived in Paris as a refugee. He was an excellent surgeon but, being a refugee, he could not practice legally. He managed to work with two French surgeons with lesser skills to perform major surgeries illegally. His work enhanced the French doctors’ reputations, who also pocketed the lion shares of the fees.

Ravic met the heroine Joan in a rainy evening in the streets of Paris. Joan’s lover had died suddenly in their hotel room, and she was roaming aimlessly when Ravi ran into her. She did not know anybody in Paris and had no home to return to. Ravic helped her settle during this difficult period, including finding her a singing job through his friend Boris. The story went on with the development of their relationship and their falling in love with each other. All went well for more than a year, during which they even spent a week in the French Riviera. Then, one day, on a Paris street, Ravic saved a worker’s life who had fell from a construction site. Under questioning as a witness by the police, his illegal refugee status was revealed, and he was deported to Switzerland.

As he had done before, Ravic was able to cross the border again and return to Paris. Although he and Joan were united, their lives were not the same as before. Joan thought Ravic would not return, and had met other men in the meantime, including someone who was an actor, who introduced her to the acting profession. There were frequent quarrels between Ravic and Joan. Toward the end of the story, Joan died from a gunshot wound by the actor. About this time, war was declared between Germany and France. Ravic, together with the refugees living in Hotel International, were rounded up by the French police. The lights of Paris were turned off in anticipation of air raids. They were on the way to a French concentration camp. When the car carrying the refugees turned into the Place De l’Etoile, “It was so dark that one could not even see the Arc de Triomphe”, so ended the 535 page novel.

Unlike “All Quiet on the Western Front” or “A Time to Love and a Time to Die”, there were no brutal war scenes in this book. There were, however, graphic descriptions of several surgeries, including a cancer surgery, an abortion surgery, and the amputation of a leg. There was also a description of death on the operating table due to the patient arriving a little too late, as well as the gruesome narrative of Ravic killing his Gestapo torturer Haake. When he found Haake in Paris, he lured him to ride with him to the outskirts, where he killed and buried him.

In all of Remarque’s novels, there were ample pages devoted to the descriptions of natural sceneries and thoughts associated with various human emotions. The latter rivals Freud. To many readers, these were mesmerizing passages. To others, they were probably somewhat long winded.

Another characteristic of Remarque’s novels was that, whenever people met, the first thing they did was to have a drink, whether in a bar or just in a room. Drinks are indispensable for novelists. Most of the names of the brands, such as vodka and cognac, are familiar. One new brand I learned in this novel was calvados, a favorite drink in France.

All of Remarque’s books contain some memorable quotes. This one is no exception. Here they are:

- Faith can easily make one fanatical. That’s why all religions have cost so much blood. Tolerance is the daughter of doubt.

- An avalanche couldn’t be stopped once it had started to move; whoever tried, fell beneath it. Better to wait and later to dig out the victims.

- Man is great in his intentions, but weak in carrying them out. Therein lie our misery and our charm.

- We have our dreams because without them we could not bear the truth.

- Happiness lies all around us. We only have to pick it up.

In conclusion, a novel replete with ups and downs of romantic love, psychoanalysis of human emotions, and vivid descriptions of natural sceneries.

Link to Amazon Review: https://www.amazon.com/review/R2HPCA9UG94GUY/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv