Pretense
The main theme of the story "Taste" is the theme of pretense. The main character, a famous gourmet and seemingly a wine expert is so confident in his abilities that he is ready to gamble his entire property on them. He is a pompous fellow whose excruciatingly long and pretentious wine testing gives more value to his opinion and character than deserved. His pretentious image is crushed by an old maid who reveals his trickery.
Murder
The main theme in the story "Lamb to the Slaughter" is the theme of murder. Mary is in shock after her husband asks for a divorce and kills him instantly with a hit on the head by a cold lamb bone. She is a perfect actress setting up an alibi for herself and making the policemen eat the murder weapon at the end, while giggling at her success.
Gambling
Gambling is another theme portrayed in several of the story in the collection. "Man from the South" portrays an eccentric fellow who bizarrely enjoys gambling for and collecting people's fingers. "My Lady Love, My Dove" portrays a wicked couple who decide to learn the code for gambling, while "Dip in the Pool" portrays a foolish individual whose eagerness to win a gamble cost him his life. Finally, "Claud's Dog" shows an unfortunate man who devises a plan to win at gambling without hurting his beloved dog so that he can make his fiancée happy, but human greed steals it away from him.
PTSD
The story "Soldier" portrays a man who is unable to feel, and who has severe memory loss and violent outbreaks. The story itself doesn't reveal much of the character's background, but the title alludes to him being a soldier returned from war. From the plot it can be derived that the theme portrayed in this story is PTSD, of a man unable to focus his thought on the present and who is severely suffering.
School Abuse
The story "Galloping Foxley" portrays a theme of child abuse in school, where the main character meets his abuser on train and the entire experience comes back to him. The story shows detailed experience of the abuse, physical and mental, and which clearly left a scar on the main character, who is barely mustering the courage to approach his abuser, now an old man and introduce himself.
