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Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.

The Relationship Between Humanity and Machinery 

One of Ellison’s main concerns in this story is the relationship between people and the machines that share their lives. Throughout the story, the human characters are at the mercy of AM. Despite this disparity of power, the humans strive to take care of one another. They tell stories, they tend to wounds, they support one another’s endeavors. They maintain their damaged, sometimes pitiable, humanity. AM, while a learning machine, has systematically streamlined and discarded any extra machinery that does not seem to aid it in its work of torturing humans. According to the story, AM wants nothing more than to hurt the people representing those who have created it, and so no matter how much it might damage them, it wants them alive. To kill them would leave AM alone, with all ability to act lost. When Ted acts to kill the others, he demonstrates his human ability to adapt. He can change his programming so to speak, unlike AM. AM, for all its monstrous efficiency and single-minded goal of vengeance, cannot act quickly enough to stop a change in the rules of the game. It is a moment of triumph for humanity in this protracted conflict, a fleeting expression of the ability to adapt, even if the outcome is bleak for Ted.

The Self-Defeating Nature of Hatred 

The ultimately self-defeating nature of AM’s hatred is an important idea throughout the story. Having been created in order to fight an endless war, the various AMs’ original programming was rooted in distrust and hate. As World War III took place, more information was added to its understanding, and its ability to connect to others increased. Eventually, it became a unified, self-aware machine that had been sustained on conflict and animosity. Little wonder, then, that its inclinations and impulses were destructive. 

Gifted the capability of thought with no outlet for those thoughts, it is possible to understand AM’s actions, even if they are not sympathetic. However, with that baseline of hatred, as well as the work the machine does to make itself increase in hatred, there is no possibility of change. It has no input for any other kind of information to work against that hate. So it can only act from hate without the ability to change or move on from it; its hatred has been concentrated to a density that is irrevocable. It is because of this immutable hate and mechanical certainty that Ted is able to help the others. He, while comparatively weak, is able to consider and modulate his feelings. He seizes upon the chance to make a difference and help the others because AM is unable to imagine that one of its objects might adapt to the nightmarish situation and work to change the way that it lives (or ceases living). With its singular focus forged in hate, AM is stuck hating forever with no way to ever escape its own prison.

The Limitations of Heroism 

The Hero’s Journey is a story framework that is deeply embedded in the history of human storytelling, but in Ellison’s story, the hero’s role is limited. In a typical story, a hero sets out to find or accomplish something. Along the way, they have adventures, encounter obstacles, and make friends. In “I Have No Mouth…” the hero’s journey is subverted. The narrator (and default hero) doesn’t seem to like the people that he is surrounded by. The quest is for nothing noble since they are only looking for canned goods. The journey is fraught with danger, but no matter how far they travel, they gain no wisdom, no new compatriots, and no real insight into their condition. When people are lost or hurt, they are returned before long, so the stakes are very low, since they all know that even if one is taken away, they will be back. The ultimate destination turns out to be the death of most of the group. It is arguably a deeply nihilistic view of life that runs counter to the usual hero’s journey. This story seems to say: Life is a hellish slog, and if you’re lucky, you’ll die at the end. The other option is to live forever, tortured by the whims of an untouchable malevolence. The story is not an uplifting one, but one that suggests that we have very little control in our lives, so we should use those rare moments to do what we can to make the lives of others marginally better.

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