---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ... We had suddenly learned to see. And…"
description: "\"“... We had suddenly learned to see. And we saw that there was nothing of their world left. We were all at once terribly alone; and alone we must see i..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e21/erich-maria-remarque-568_germany_we-had-suddenly-learned-to-see-and-we-sa_2056939.jpg"
---

#  ... We had suddenly learned to see. And we saw that there…

![“... We had suddenly learned to see. And we saw that there was nothing of their world left. We were all at once terribly alone; and alone we must see it through.” quote by Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e21/erich-maria-remarque-568_germany_we-had-suddenly-learned-to-see-and-we-sa_2056939.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e21/erich-maria-remarque-568_germany_we-had-suddenly-learned-to-see-and-we-sa_2056939.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e21/erich-maria-remarque-568_germany_we-had-suddenly-learned-to-see-and-we-sa_2056939.jpg)

> ““... We had suddenly learned to see. And we saw that there was nothing of their world left. We were all at once terribly alone; and alone we must see it through.””

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The war strips away illusion, leaving soldiers isolated and forced to confront harsh reality alone.

**In simple terms:** War reveals emptiness and loneliness.

Key Takeaway

Accept solitude and confront reality.

Themes

war loneliness illusion survival

Mood

somber reflective

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- combat
- post‑war adjustment
- veteran reintegration
- personal grief

Key Concepts

existentialism psychology trauma

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you find meaning when everything feels empty?
- Can solitude become a source of strength?

A Different Perspective

Isolation can deepen trauma if not addressed.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Germany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/germany/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Wwi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wwi/)

## Related quotes

> [From a young age until I played in the first team at Arsenal it always went so well. And then suddenly, I learned: 'Woah,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serge-gnabry/from-a-young-age-until-i-played-in-the-first-team-at-arsenal-it/)

[Serge Gnabry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/serge-gnabry/)

> [“As suddenly the whole world would slip back into a mollifying, untormented dark; their aching bodies knew its calm.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-jones/as-suddenly-the-whole-world-would-slip-back-into-a-mollifying/)

[David Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-jones/)

> [“I stand there and wonder whether, when I am twenty, I shall have experienced the bewildering emotions of love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/i-stand-there-and-wonder-whether-when-i-am-twenty-i-shall-have/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“We know only that in some strange and melancholy way we have become a waste land. All the same, we are not often sad.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/we-know-only-that-in-some-strange-and-melancholy-way-we-have-become-a/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [All Quiet on the Western Front.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/all-quiet-on-the-western-front/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [It is important to remember when making jokes about women, that they are not a minority. They weren't captured on another continent and brought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/it-is-important-to-remember-when-making-jokes-about-women-that-they/)

[P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/)

> [“I wokeup in morning and saw, world has move on”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sukant-ratnakar/i-wokeup-in-morning-and-saw-world-has-move-on/)

[Sukant Ratnakar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sukant-ratnakar/)

> [“I thought I needed to see the world with you, but I didn't. I saw the world in you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-yeh/i-thought-i-needed-to-see-the-world-with-you-but-i-didn-t-i-saw-the/)

Jessica Yeh

> [It's my birthday! and when I first saw the world. I fell in love with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina/it-s-my-birthday-and-when-i-first-saw-the-world-i-fell-in-love-with-it/)

[Katrina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina/)

> [Through books and photographs, I saw a world that was not my own - and I realized that there was another world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bette-midler/through-books-and-photographs-i-saw-a-world-that-was-not-my-own-and-i-2/)

[Bette Midler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bette-midler/)

> [“She smiled up at him, and he saw his whole world in her eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-gideon/she-smiled-up-at-him-and-he-saw-his-whole-world-in-her-eyes/)

[Nancy Gideon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-gideon/)

> [“I saw everything in the world build up and then everything in the world fall down again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-keegan/i-saw-everything-in-the-world-build-up-and-then-everything-in-the/)

[Marina Keegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-keegan/)

> [“You was in all sorts of places, huh?” “Yeah, I was. Saw the world.” “What’d you think of it?” “Different languages, same shit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-lehane/you-was-in-all-sorts-of-places-huh-yeah-i-was-saw-the-world-what-d/)

[Dennis Lehane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-lehane/)

> [“all these years I have looked through your limbs to the river below and the roofs and the night and you were the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin-2/all-these-years-i-have-looked-through-your-limbs-to-the-river-below/)

[W.S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin-2/)

> [“All I saw was Ben, and I knew that all he saw was me. The whole world didn't - it was there, but it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivy-devlin/all-i-saw-was-ben-and-i-knew-that-all-he-saw-was-me-the-whole-world/)

[Ivy Devlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivy-devlin/)

## More by Erich Maria Remarque

> [There was only the broad square with the scattered dim moons of the street lamps and with the monumental stone arch which receded into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/there-was-only-the-broad-square-with-the-scattered-dim-moons-of-the/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“The idea of authority, which they represented, was associated in our minds with a greater insight and a more humane wisdom. But the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/the-idea-of-authority-which-they-represented-was-associated-in-our/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“It was a long time since I had been in a theatre. And I would not have come now had Pat not wanted it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/it-was-a-long-time-since-i-had-been-in-a-theatre-and-i-would-not-have/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“Besides,” continued Gottfried, “you’re coming now to the time when the difference between a bourgeois and a cavalier begins to show. A bourgeois always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/besides-continued-gottfried-you-re-coming-now-to-the-time-when-the/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“They are wearing new uniforms and greatcoats; their boots are water-tight and fit well; their rifles are good and their pouches full of ammunition.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/they-are-wearing-new-uniforms-and-greatcoats-their-boots-are-water/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“Shortly after the war Valentin had come into a little money, and had been drinking it ever since. He considered it his duty to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/shortly-after-the-war-valentin-had-come-into-a-little-money-and-had/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“A man has to have something he can put faith in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/a-man-has-to-have-something-he-can-put-faith-in/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“It is very queer that the unhappiness of the world is so often brought on by small men.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/it-is-very-queer-that-the-unhappiness-of-the-world-is-so-often/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [I, too, am going to go away soon,' she says, 'I am weary and weary of my weariness. Everything is beginning to be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/i-too-am-going-to-go-away-soon-she-says-i-am-weary-and-weary-of-my/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“One is never too young. Only always too old.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/one-is-never-too-young-only-always-too-old/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [You take it from me, we are losing the war because we can salute too well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/you-take-it-from-me-we-are-losing-the-war-because-we-can-salute-too/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“It keeps them going, staves off the evil day when they will be alone. And to be alone, really alone, without illusion, that way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/it-keeps-them-going-staves-off-the-evil-day-when-they-will-be-alone/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“Suddenly he knew all the things he should have said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/suddenly-he-knew-all-the-things-he-should-have-said/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“To hell with it. What was the use trying to make safe and sure our little life? Sooner or later the great wave must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/to-hell-with-it-what-was-the-use-trying-to-make-safe-and-sure-our/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [“I glance at my boots. They are big and clumsy, the breeches are tucked into them, and standing up one looks well-built and powerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/i-glance-at-my-boots-they-are-big-and-clumsy-the-breeches-are-tucked/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

[Explore all 360 Erich Maria Remarque quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

## More Germany quotes

> [When I passed the Chancellor he arose, waved his hand at me, and I waved back at him. I think the writers showed bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/when-i-passed-the-chancellor-he-arose-waved-his-hand-at-me-and-i/)

[Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/)

> [History has often showed us the strength of the forces that are unleashed by the yearning for freedom. It moved people to overcome their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-merkel/history-has-often-showed-us-the-strength-of-the-forces-that-are/)

[Angela Merkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-merkel/)

> [ Neither Italian fascism nor German national "socialism" have anything in common with such a \[Soviet socialistic\] society, primarily because private ownership of factories, plants,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stalin/neither-italian-fascism-nor-german-national-socialism-have-anything/)

[Joseph Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stalin/)

> [Why did Erich von Stronheim leave Germany? Why did Hitchcock leave England? If you were a director you'd like to work in Hollywood too.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-polanski/why-did-erich-von-stronheim-leave-germany-why-did-hitchcock-leave/)

[Roman Polanski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-polanski/)

> [All Germany was in turmoil. Revolutionaries seized power in the cities of Munich, Hanover and Cologne. One regional German government after another was toppled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cross-giblin/all-germany-was-in-turmoil-revolutionaries-seized-power-in-the-cities/)

James Cross Giblin

> [The system in Germany is different, as you sign up with a company for two or three years, and you work exclusively with them;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wlaschiha/the-system-in-germany-is-different-as-you-sign-up-with-a-company-for/)

[Tom Wlaschiha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wlaschiha/)

> [If Christianity had asserted itself in Germany, six million Jews would have lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/if-christianity-had-asserted-itself-in-germany-six-million-jews-would/)

[Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/)

> [I was fascinated by the story of FW Murnau, one of the most famous directors in Germany, where I come from.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/udo-kier/i-was-fascinated-by-the-story-of-fw-murnau-one-of-the-most-famous/)

[Udo Kier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/udo-kier/)

> [“Ne ispada li, onda, da je egzistencijalni umor rezultat premalog, a ne prevelikog angažovanja? Postajemo li umorni usled toga što olakšavamo sebi situaciju, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernhard-schlink/ne-ispada-li-onda-da-je-egzistencijalni-umor-rezultat-premalog-a-ne/)

[Bernhard Schlink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernhard-schlink/)

> [As far as I know, the question of whether and how it could be strategically or morally justified was never the subject of open…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-far-as-i-know-the-question-of-whether-and-how-it-could-be/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Once the war began, the government could do anything 'necessary' to win it; so it was with the 'final solution of the Jewish problem,'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-mayer/once-the-war-began-the-government-could-do-anything-necessary-to-win/)

[Milton Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-mayer/)

> [I think we should have basically the same tax policy that Germany, Japan, the U.K., everybody else has, which is a tax rate in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-immelt/i-think-we-should-have-basically-the-same-tax-policy-that-germany/)

[Jeffrey R. Immelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-immelt/)

> [“I stood with my mom in the cemetery. She felt terrible pain. My grandmother is with God. My mom has to continue living. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tucker-elliot/i-stood-with-my-mom-in-the-cemetery-she-felt-terrible-pain-my/)

[Tucker Elliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tucker-elliot/)

> [“. Despite the considerable horror they had felt when the SA men were bellowing crude anti-Semitic slogans, in retrospect the joke-tellers were very much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolph-herzog/despite-the-considerable-horror-they-had-felt-when-the-sa-men-were/)

[Rudolph Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolph-herzog/)

> [There are historical analogs, which are not exact, of course, but are close enough to be worrisome. This is a whiff of early Nazi…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-historical-analogs-which-are-not-exact-of-course-but-are/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

[Browse all 1,737 Germany quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/germany/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“... We had suddenly learned to see. And we saw that there was nothing of their world left. We were all at once terribly alone; and alone we must see it through.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Erich Maria Remarque"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/we-had-suddenly-learned-to-see-and-we-saw-that-there-was-nothing-of/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Germany"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/we-had-suddenly-learned-to-see-and-we-saw-that-there-was-nothing-of/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e21/erich-maria-remarque-568_germany_we-had-suddenly-learned-to-see-and-we-sa_2056939.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e21/erich-maria-remarque-568_germany_we-had-suddenly-learned-to-see-and-we-sa_2056939.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e21/erich-maria-remarque-568_germany_we-had-suddenly-learned-to-see-and-we-sa_2056939.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“... We had suddenly learned to see. And we saw that there was nothing of their world left. We were all at…” — Erich Maria Remarque",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Erich Maria Remarque",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“... We had suddenly learned to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/we-had-suddenly-learned-to-see-and-we-saw-that-there-was-nothing-of/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/we-had-suddenly-learned-to-see-and-we-saw-that-there-was-nothing-of/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
