Man vs. Nature
Man versus nature is the story's central theme. Isolated from society, the shipwrecked men are alone in on the open ocean. In a tiny boat on turbulent seas, they are especially vulnerable to natural elements: they must remain vigilant and united against the violent waves that threaten to sink their dinghy and drown them. From this adversarial position, the correspondent characterizes the sea as a malevolent agent of a cruel nature. However, as the narrative progresses, the correspondent's perspective on the conflict changes: he struggles with his beliefs, wanting to trust that the universe has a plan for him. Ultimately, the correspondent overcomes his uncertainty by accepting man's insignificance. Nature is not with him or against him; as he comes to see it, nature is "flatly indifferent" to his fate.
Solidarity
Solidarity is another major theme. Pitted against an indifferent nature, the men develop a sense of community in the boat. The correspondent is grateful for "the subtle brotherhood of men that was here established on the seas." The men never speak of the solidarity they mutually feel, but it is what enables them to maintain sanity and a sense of order in the trying situation. The story suggests that, in a universe indifferent to humanity's fate, shared understanding and mutual respect among people is vital to survival.
Survival
A desire for survival undergirds the entire story. From the outset, the men focus solely on surviving the harsh waves and cold to return to the safety of shore. The desire to survive gives rise to the solidarity within the boat and to the correspondent's reflections on the fate of humans in an indifferent universe. But as exhaustion sets in, the correspondent considers the appeal of drowning. In contrast to the strain, fatigue, and existential uncertainty inherent to survival, the cessation of life that the cold ocean offers resembles a soft bed. Nonetheless, the correspondent's desire to survive makes him fight against the allure of giving up.
Sympathy
The theme of sympathy enters the story most directly during the correspondent's nighttime reveries. Rowing alone, the correspondent remembers a few lines from Caroline Norton's "Bingen on the Rhine." The correspondent had never felt anything for the poem's dying solider, but he can now picture the figure lying on the battlefield. Being near death himself, the correspondent develops sympathy for the soldier. This change in perspective speaks to the importance of sympathy between humans in an indifferent and uncaring universe.
