Traditional Christmas
The overwhelming theme of the movie is the traditional Christmas celebration. It depicts Christmas as a time of both stress and joy for the average, middle-class, Midwestern American family in the 1940s: small riffs between mother and father, children's fantasies of certain gifts, a family trip to purchase and decorate a tree together, a visit to an angry mall Santa, and the chaotic but joyful Christmas morning spent opening presents (children) and drinking wine (the parents). While all viewers will likely relate to the film's portrayal of Christmas, viewers of a certain age might find particular details in the film most relatable, including the children listening to the radio, the father constantly fighting with the furnace, walking to school in the snow, and the soap punishment Ralphie receives for swearing in front of his parents.
Gender
The film draws a humorous contrast between Ralphie's parents, often portraying the mother as warm and patient and the father as distracted and intimidating. It also pokes fun at the film's setting – the 1940s – and the gender stereotypes that existed at the time. When the family sits down for dinner, for example, Ralphie's mother is just about to take a bite of food when Ralphie's father asks her to get up and get him seconds. The adult Ralphie remarks, "My mother had not had a hot meal for herself in 15 years," emphasizing the expectation that his mother was meant to serve the rest of the family before herself. This portrayal of gender roles is generally lighthearted rather than seriously critical, however. Indeed, the film allows Ralphie's mother to exact a type of "power" of her own when she secretly breaks the hideous leg lamp, another instance of the sexes battling within what would have been a typical 1940s marriage.
A Child's Perspective
Although the film is narrated by the adult Ralphie Parker, it is primarily presented from the perspective of a nine-year-old child, who is discovering the gap between what parents say and what parents do, learning to stand up to bullies, and experiencing the reality that is a disgruntled mall Santa. When Ralphie uses a swear word, he is harshly punished, but he learned the word from his father, who peppers his mutterings with curses as he fights with the family's unreliable furnace. Similarly, nearly every adult in the film tells Ralphie, "you'll shoot your eye out" when he requests the Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas, emphasizing the difference between a child's perspective – having fun – and an adult's – danger and injury. The gap between a child's perspective and an adult's is one of the key themes in the film.
Class
A Christmas Story follows what many would consider the average middle-class American household in the 1940s. Even the film's name suggests that this "story" is not necessarily a special one, but instead one to which many people will likely relate. One of the film's central themes, therefore, revolves around the family's economic status, especially with regard to the father (who, in the 1940s, would be considered the "provider" of the household). Throughout the film, Ralphie's father is preoccupied with getting rich fast; he does crossword puzzles daily for the chance to win money, and when he wins the infamous leg lamp from Western Union, he is convinced it is a high-class piece of decor. Through the character of Ralphie's father, the film showcases the common middle-class desire for wealth, flashy belongings, and ease of living.
Bildungsroman
The term "bildungsroman" typically refers to a coming-of-age novel, but it is just as operative in this film about a nine-year-old boy at Christmas time. When the film begins, Ralphie is very much a child with little control over his own life. His desire for the Red Ryder BB gun becomes a symbol of his desire to transition out of childhood and into adolescence, a transformation that starts to happen once he retaliates against the bullies at school. After that moment, both Ralphie's father and mother begin to see him in a different light, so much so that his father even buys him the Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas after all.
Absurdity
Part of the film's comedy stems from its reliance on exaggerated situations that border on the absurd. The disgruntled mall Santa, for example, sits atop a giant slide down which the mean elves send children after they sit on Santa's lap. In this scene, the film dramatizes Ralphie's perspective as a small child being dragged and pushed around by the intimidating adults, creating a humorous representation of the otherwise wholesome and popular Christmas activity. The film's absurdity helps frame typical Christmas traditions in a new light, subtly mocking them while reminding viewers of their own Christmas experiences as children and even as adults.
Family
While the film follows Ralphie more closely than other characters, it is ultimately the story of a family celebrating the Christmas holiday. Over the course of the film, each member of the family becomes more complex, and viewers will likely sympathize with at least one character throughout. The final scene of the movie – in which Ralphie, his brother, his father, and his mother laugh uncontrollably at the Chinese restaurant – emphasizes the way that Christmas, with all of its stresses and surprises, ultimately does bring the family closer together. The adult Ralphie thinks fondly of that Christmas because of his Red Ryder BB gun, but he also suggests that that particular Christmas is significant because of the memories of his family that it left him with.
