What are the motifs in Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley?

The ravages of war are a recurring idea. As the six young men who would come to be known as the flag raisers on Iwo Jima joined the Marines and Navy, the images they had of war were undoubtedly far from the reality that they would eventually come to know all too intimately. Jack Bradley, encouraged by his father, joined the Navy so he could avoid being drafted by the Army and thus avoid combat. Unbeknown to both father and son, by Jack joining the Navy he was on his way to one of the most viscous battles that the United States would ever face in its entire history.