Perspective
The theme of perspective emerges in one of Amie’s letters to Ben. In this letter, she describes a lunch during which she and her co-worker spent the entire time convincing the rest of the table that the strings are a gift to humanity. They reason that we’ve always received the message to live life like every day is our last, but that no one is doing it. So in that way, the strings offer us a chance to live more mindfully, because we know how much time we have left to do so. As the strings haven’t been portrayed as a gift yet by any short-stringers, it is poignant and supports the theme of perspective to see someone who doesn’t know the length of their string argue to a short-stringer that the strings are a gift (p. 88). In another letter, Amie also explains that there is no foolproof explanation for what the string really are, so they can mean whatever we want them to mean (p. 112).
We also see how young Europeans are burning their boxes as a symbolic rejection of the strings during Midsummer celebrations, while the US is issuing a requirement for string transparency for high-security clearance personnel in the military. In this, we see how a different perspective on life can change how the strings affect a society.
Fate
We see the theme of fate in Hank's reasoning for leaving the hospital and Ben’s final words to Hank. Hank quits his job as a surgeon because he feels obsolete: since the strings determine the length of one's life, what does it matter whether the surgery is done well or not? After Hank jumps in front of a gun at the Rollins rally, Ben is the only one who knows that Hank is at the end of his string. Ben has a moment of realization and tells him that the people he performed surgeries on lived because of Hank—because he was destined to meet them. He is the reason their strings are long (p.175).
We further see the theme of fate in the point of view of Anthony Rollins when he learns that he does have a connection to the assailant: her younger brother died during hazing at Anthony's fraternity house due to verbal and physical abuse and forced alcohol consumption. Anthony struggles with the idea that while the boy's string was short, God may have known what would happen that night—that their actions were predetermined (p. 210-212).
Fortune
Fortune is a prominent theme in The Measure. We see this theme best presented in people's attitudes toward their strings. Anthony and Katherine believe that the length of their strings shows that they are favored by God and shoo-ins for salvation (p. 73). Contrastingly, Nihal shares how when he told his parents about his short string they tried to comfort him by telling him that he may be a long-stringer in his next life. Nihal doesn't find comfort in this; he isn't religious and believes that having a short string means he must have done something wrong because he wants a long life (p. 142). Nihal explains how he got good grades and was a focused student, but despite his efforts, he has a short string. He believes he must have done something wrong. The contrast in these examples and how people see a long string as a gift supports the theme of fortune and how life is considered the ultimate gift.
Faith
Erlick uses everyday situations to illustrate how the strings have changed people's everyday lives. An example of this is when Hank meets the mother of Dr. Singh's young female patient. The girl needs a lung transplant, and initially, when Hank speaks to her mother he admires her faith. She is so calm and optimistic during an incredibly stressful situation. However, he learns she is calm because she has peeked at her daughter's string and knows she is a long-stringer. The theme of faith takes on a different hue in The Measure because it poses the question of what faith looks like when we know whether our prayers will be answered (p. 151). If faith is belief in the absence of proof, then what is faith in a world with strings?
In contrast, we see how faith can be present in a society with strings through Amie's point of view. Amie hasn’t looked at her string, so she offers more of an objective perspective on this world. While she knows she is falling in love with Ben, she's afraid of the prospect of creating a life with a short-stringer. Whenever she pictures the good times with him and their future family she can’t help but fear his impending death. In an instance of auditory imagery, Amie hears the song "Que sera, sera" when she’s questioning her resolve (p. 293). This song comes from the speaker strapped on the back of a man riding his bike through the streets of New York and functions a symbol of hope, encouraging Amie to have faith.
Fear of The Other
Under the new world order after the arrival of the strings, the media highlights the crimes of short-stringers. Violence begins to ensue and short-stringers are painted as hot-headed and unpredictable because they will not live to see the consequences of their actions. This theme is personified in the character of Anthony Rollins, who is a foil in this novel, and represents the fear Americans have, as we learn that his main demographic is older long-stringers who are afraid of the threat posed by short-stringers (p. 295). We also see this theme of the fear of the other in the STAR Initiative, which bars short-stringers from holding positions that require a high security clearance through the string transparency requirement.
Permanence
We see the theme of permanence most poignantly illustrated in the human desire for control in The Measure. Maura brings up, in conversation with Ben, the mind-uploading companies who strive to discover how to "perpetually preserve" the human brain by scanning it onto a computer. The companies use language connotating exerting control such as “escaping” a timeline that is “dictated by our physical body” (p. 207). While Ben isn't interested in mind-uploading, he sees that there is more than one way to live on after death when he meets the woman to whom Hank donated his lungs. Earlier in the book, Ben describes how architects allow past rejected projects to live on by adding some of their elements into new projects and how he sees designing a permanent building as a way of living on. Meeting the lung donation recipient shows Ben how there are many ways we can live on through people we've never met (p. 256).
In the description of the commissioned sculpture Strung Together, the artist explains that humans want to be remembered, that we write our names on desks and carve our names into trees so that people know that we existed and we were here. The Tree of Life sculpture symbolizes this desire for permanence but also reminds others that these people were here too. (p. 322)
Interconectedness
When Javier approaches his death, he holds the prayer card he received from Jack and reads the prayer aloud to feel that he is not dying alone. At this moment, we learn that Gertrude and Simon—whose story is the subject of Amie and Ben’s initial letters—are the couple from whom this prayer card originates. Grandpa Cal received it from Simon during the war and gave it to Jack. In this, we see the connection between the character's storylines symbolized in this prayer card. Javier knows that he isn’t the only one to read this tattered prayer card aloud, which invokes a feeling of connectedness, which brings him peace in his final moments (p. 329).
The Tree of Life sculpture is also a symbol of interconnectedness in The Measure. It includes strings from hundreds of different people in place of leaves, symbolizing their connection despite their differences (p. 322). Through the interconnectedness between the characters we follow, we know that this symbolic interconnectedness holds true and is unfolding within their stories, even if they don't know it.
