Family honor and shame
The confusion that the speaker feels toward the mixed cast of his family is captured when he attempts to retell the brutal story of his uncle being skinned to death. He is trying to figure out how to interpret those unfathomable facts, and in the process, he is trying to figure out what the mistakes and fates of his ancestors might mean in his own life.
The balance of opposites
In this novel, "moral justice" is not demonstrated by ethical decisions, but rather by a sense of Daoist balance. Commander Yu is simultaneously a sympathetic, loving person, and a cruel, violent tyrant. This depiction of humankind as a combination of opposite energies is sustained through the entire narrative.
The tragic passage of time
No one can prevent the passage of time. When the grandson visits his grandparents' grave in 1970, he notices the symbol of his family, red sorghum, and he sees that it's being choked out by a new variety of sorghum, and much of the novel can be summarized in that image. There is a thematic exploration of generational identity in the face of death and change.
