LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in In the Dream House, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Queer Visibility
Christianity and Shame
Abuse, Trauma, and Healing
Storytelling, Responsibility, and Freedom
Summary
Analysis
The woman from the Dream House gets into the MFA program at Iowa and plans to move in with Machado. Machado feels as though she’s been smashed in the face with a baseball.
The proximity of the woman from the Dream House no longer brings Machado pleasure, but instead feels like a physical threat.