Contingency
The first theme of Contingency, Irony, and Solidarity is best summarized in a word: contingency. The first third of the book is dedicated to exploring the idea of contingency, especially the contingencies that effect our perception of self, like the interpretation of our past, the use of language and conceptualization, and the subjective nature of our points of view.
Irony
The second theme of the book is irony. Irony in literature is when some part of a novel seems discontinuous with the reader's expectations, but Rorty means the word more broadly. To Rorty, 'irony' means "Understanding that things are not what they seem." Taken seriously, this awareness of irony should remind a person that since they could be wrong about themselves, they should hold their beliefs about themselves with a sense of humor and detachment, so that they are more willing to change in the face of evidence or a better path (Rorty argues).
Solidarity
The final topic of these lectures and writings is solidarity, which simply means "Remembering that we're all in this together." Rorty argues that our default mode is not oriented toward solidarity, but cruelty. He argues that our default idiosyncrasies often exist for dubious purposes, and that we should be open to feedback that suggests that our personalities might be cruel. That's all very complicated language for a simple idea: Everyone thinks they are nice, but few people are genuinely interested in the welfare of others.
