Esprit de Corps

Paul offers a strong, practical sense of esprit de corps which in the field developed into the finest thing that arose out of the war. This esprit de corps is demonstrated throughout the novel and is a central theme. These soldiers are subject to consistent harm to their physical bodies without thought of the effect it has on their mental aptitude. This unromanticized version of war takes the reader and introduces them to the primal fear of being on the front. Remarque portrays the war as a constant state of panic, and through this, his characters don't accept the conditions nor do they disconnect from their normal lives, but instead form bonds that are very strong. I predict that these bonds will become weaker as the novel progresses as more lives are witnessed passing. This is foreshadowed by the pressing question of Kemmerich's boots in the beginning of the novel and the darkness hinted at in the fourth chapter. As of now, these feelings are the only things preserving the soldiers humanity, and without humanity what is the point in being human.

Source