Themes

Endings and disconnectedness 

The theme of the short story “Galveston” by Frederick Barthelme is endings, which lead to disconnectedness. As his relationship with his wife is about to end, the narrator finds himself disenchanted with both his marriage, as well as with relationships in general. This leads to his feelings of alienation and unhappiness.

According to the narrator, he and Rachel believed they were in love when they married: “We thought we loved each other. We thought the world was a place we could navigate together.” However, at some point, they fell out of love. It is possible that the disappointments and tragedies which happened after they got married led to their fallout: “it’s been one tragedy after another, one...