His attitudes, at many times, parallel Henry's. One of the main themes in the novel is the view ofthe army as an individual entity. The soldiers lose their personal identity in the group context of the unit. The soldiers lose their individual identity as they are assimilated into the regiment. Part of the reason for this novels great success is its realistic portrayal of war and human truths.
Crane uses simple writing and dialogue to convey complex ideas.
He expresses, through the language of the troops, the raw emotions and feelings of the participants in the war. Like painters of the impressionism school of art, Crane is not exact in his descriptions of the action. Instead of the actual events, Crane describes the general feeling and idea of what is going on.