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Chapter 20
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Lonesome Dove, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
American Mythology
Family
Luck, Fate, and Chance
The Good Life
The Meaning of Masculinity
Feminine Strength
Summary
Analysis
When Jake awakens, a little after dawn, Lorena is already up. He wishes he could go back to sleep, delay their departure, stay longer in the relative comforts even a place like Lonesome Dove has compared to life on the trail. But he also knows he can’t talk Lorie out of going. And he can’t bear disappointing women—at least to their faces. Since he isn’t ready to walk out on Lorie, he must do what she wants. Reluctantly, he gets out of bed. Lorena gives him the $50 she got from Gus to use on a horse for her. When he leaves, she gathers the few things she plans on taking. It isn’t much.
Jake wants a comfortable and coddled existence where he answers to no one and has no responsibilities. But it’s not possible to have that kind of life and also have relationships with other people; by their very nature, relationships demand some sort of reciprocity. Moreover, his assent to Lorena’s demands further suggests his weakness of character. He’s letting her dictate his actions instead of making his own choices.
Themes
Lorena has just finished packing when Xavier knocks on the door in tears. He declares his love and offers to marry her and take her to San Francisco herself. He threatens to burn down the Dry Bean if she leaves. She declines. He offers her even more than Augustus had—maybe $100—to have sex one last time. Reluctantly, she agrees. He cries the whole time, and his eyes are empty of life and emotion when he turns to descend the stairs. Quietly, she hides the money where Jake won’t see it.
Jake isn’t the only one who feels powerless against Lorena’s charms—if anything, Xavier loves her more desperately than either Jake or Dish. Lorena’s life has taught her that she can’t rely on others, especially men, and self-reliance is a skill Jake and Xavier would be wise to learn, too, the book suggests. Lorena uses her self-reliance here to calmly but firmly turn down Xavier’s increasingly frantic and unhinged overtures.
Themes
