Prostitution
Prostitution is at the center of A Dangerous Business. In the novel, the two main characters—Eliza and Jean—are prostitutes who trade sex for money. They live in a world that doesn’t look down upon prostitutes; instead, many people in the time in which Eliza and Jean live recognize the value of prostitutes. As such, many people in the old west and in the world of A Dangerous Business don't look down upon prostitutes, as many do in the present day.
For Eliza and Jean, prostitution is a means to an end. Neither particularly like being prostitutes, but they realize that they must continue being prostitutes to maintain some semblance of safety and positivity. Neither like being prostitutes; both, however, like having the benefits involved with being a prostitute.
The old west
Although the setting of A Dangerous Business is the old west, one of the novel's most important themes is the old west. The old west and the culture therein have informed the way that many people in the novel, especially Eliza and Jean, live their lives. After all, the culture in the old west is incredibly different from the culture in normal America. Because of the danger and violence and negativity posed by life in the old west, many (including the two sex workers at the center of A Dangerous Business) had to change the way they lived to remain safe and ensure the safety of their friends and family. The old west changed people; it also made people rich, famous, and in some cases, infamous.
Violence
In the old west, which is largely lawless and violent, violence runs rampant. When there are no consequences, people will do anything and everything they can to accomplish what they need to. At the end of the day, though, violence affects and is present in all aspects of a person's life who lived in the old west. Violence is also the single most transformative thing a person, especially the characters in the novel, must contend with in their lives.
