The quantum optical theory of absorption/reemission properties of a system of interacting atoms is discussed. The calculation method of the absorption coefficient is developed with regard for the quantization of field, thermal atomic motion, Doppler effect, and the model interaction between atoms. It is shown that the formulation of the absorption coefficient in the quantum optical context is based on the commutation relation between the operators of electric field and intensity. The revealed non-linear dependence of the absorption coefficient on the atomic density, even in the case of negligible binary interaction, can be referred to a certain kind of quantum-optic collective effects.