Theme - healing from a war.

Theme

   There quite some themes are released in the novel, for example, love's ability to transcend time and place, nationality and identity, loneliness vs. connection etc. But I think the major theme is about the healing from a war. 

   When each character arrives at the Italian villa, it seems that they are physically or emotionally wounded: Hana lost her father in an accident, Caravaggio lost his thumbs at the hands of the German army, Kip lost his mother and his surrogate father, and the English patient lost both the love of his life and his own body.

     Each character has the chance to remember his or her story or share with others, and it is the process of shedding light on the dark corners of their respective souls that seems to bring healing to each one of them.

    Another important theme in the novel is love, if it is truly heartfelt, transcends place and time. Hana feels love and connection to her father even though he has left away forever.  Almasy desperately protects his love for Katharine even though he cannot go back to the cave and save her. Likewise, Kip, thought leaving Italy to have his own finally in India, thinks of Hana from time to time.

    Those love transcend even death, as the characters hold onto their emotions even past the grave. This suggests that time and place themselves are irrelevant to human connection in some level. No matter what happens, the love between them will tie their fate together.