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19. Banks
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
In April 1934, a county agent tells Billie Jo and her family that they have lost one-fourth of their wheat because of the weather. Additionally, if rain does not come soon, they are bound to lose all of it, which means they will have nothing to plant the following year. Billie Jo tries to comfort herself by playing the piano, but her mother always interrupts her and makes her do something else. One day, she sends Billie Jo to the store for groceries. On the way there, she sees Joe De La Flor with his cattle, their ribs easily visible. Billie Jo worries about what the future holds.
April is early to have lost such a significant portion of their harvest, as more storms and other forces of nature will surely arise in the coming months. Billie Jo knows how dire their situation has become, but there is nothing he can do except hope and pray. Joe De La Flor’s starving cattle are an ominous reminder of the entire community’s circumstances, which promise more death and destruction.
Themes
