Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Out of the Dust, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Nature, Survival, and the Dust Bowl
Poverty, Charity, and Community
Coming of Age
Family and Forgiveness
Summary
Analysis
Many people start leaving the Panhandle to find a life elsewhere. When they leave, they always say, “Don’t forget us” and promise they will be back. However, so many people leave that Billie Jo does not know how she is supposed to remember all of them.
The mass exodus away from the Panhandle tells Billie Jo that it is not a sustainable place to live. If so many people have gone and don’t come back, she reasons that there is presumably something better elsewhere. However, this isn’t necessarily true: the Great Depression meant that people suffered nationwide during this time.
Themes
