Friendship and Camaraderie
This group of five men use their friendship as a defense against the harshness of the Cold War era world around them. They are disillusioned as a whole -- cynics. Through trials and victories, they remain closely involved in each others lives. They appear to possess a bond beyond their own control, based upon the narrator's direct influence on their activities. Although they chose to befriend one another, they seem to be compelled or directed by the narrator to continue to invest in and participate with one another. At any rate, their close-knit community helps each of the characters employ resilience and find solace amid a politically and economically troubling time.
Humor as a Defense Against Evil
The novel is set in Paris, during the Cold War. The protagonists all remain closely invested in the unfolding political events of their time, but they are cynics. To them, the worst news ever is perfectly predictable. Within their community, however, they cultivate a sense of humor and chagrin in response to these trying times. They're aren't phased by the evil around them, but they respond with humor in order to insulate themselves from the oppressive weight of that evil. Caliban and Charles probably both embody this defense mechanism best, dressing Caliban up as a Pakistani waiter for a party one time. They're quick to find a way to defy expectations. As Ramon observes at the end of the book, he and his friends practice defiance of the darkness of the world by living as if none of it mattered. They employ humor as a sort of personal resistance to the oppressive social expectations of their era.
Anarchy
Although they live in Paris, each of the characters has a link to the Cold War in their backgrounds. They understand the massive imposition of power which the Soviets have made in the East and the consequences of said power upon the layman, but they're far removed from the action these days. The friends have removed themselves to a place where they silently support anarchy. Without taking any action themselves, they silently and privately resist. As if unwilling to be forgotten, Stalin appears several times in the book. He haunts the characters' waking lives, not literally, but they attribute actions and people to Stalin repeatedly. He embodies his own version of anarchy, symbolizing an unbeatable arm of oppression which manifests randomly in seemingly insignificant events. He plays the same game as the friends, using humor and the subversion of expectations to surprise and challenge people.
