Forgiveness is the underlying theme in the novel. Mercy Short comes to the realization that the one way to her salvation and sanity is to forgive not only her Tawny persecutors but also herself.

To do this, she had to release herself from her shroud of guilts, including such self-reproaches as being alive when family members were dead, recognizing that her captors could be, at times, not savage, but kind and caring, and accepting the fact that life with them was often filled with happy and contented times.

Hypocrisy is a secondary theme inherent throughout the story. Much as there exists hypocrisy in many forms in the contemporary world, Farber describes the feigning of beliefs and virtues among the Puritans of Boston as exemplified by the character Cotton Mather. This is evident in his demeanor and dialogue with Mercy. Although decrying the gossip, he...