Loneliness
In Christmas is a Sad Season for the Poor, Charlie (the novel's main character) is a lonely man. His life consists of waking up, getting ready for work, performing his job as an elevator operator in a high-class apartment complex, going to bed, and doing little else. During many of his shifts, Charlie complains about his life and his loneliness, which is one of the most significant themes in the novel. Because of the man's complaints, he is fired from his job. After all, people don't want to hear how lonely someone else is.
Nevertheless, Cheever includes the theme of loneliness as a way to explore how loneliness affects people. Not only that, Christmas is a Sad Season for the Poor and is a warning about the destructive power that loneliness has on a person and their psyche.
Kindness
Kindness is another important theme in Christmas is a Sad Season for the Poor. In the novel, Charlie is shown profound kindness by many of the residents of the building despite his bad attitude and seemingly constant complaining. In fact, many of the residents are so kind to Charlie that they encourage him and give him very nice presents. They do so because they feel sorry for him and because they want to show him kindness that he very likely never received. Despite Charlie's bad attitude, the inclusion of the theme of kindness is important because it shows how transformative kindness can be in a person's life—even if that person doesn't deserve it on their face.
The Christmas season
As its title suggests, Christmas is a Sad Season for the Poor is set during the Christmas season, which is another significant theme in the novel. Not only is the Christmas season the setting of the novel, but it is also included to paint a clearer picture of a man (Charlie) who is exceptionally lonely and who has very few pleasures in his life. During the Christmas season, however, Charlie's loneliness abates ever-so-slightly because of Christmas cheer from the people at the building he works at.
