Impropriety
Helen is forced to move to France in order to have her baby because she would otherwise be judged for having a child out of wedlock. Due to this, she goes through an intense struggle, which includes traveling a long distance while pregnant, nursing her baby by herself, and then traveling back "thin and worn." As such, we see that Helen is forced to go to a lot of effort, due to the expectations and judgments of others.
When she returns home, she says that the baby is her brother's and that she is honorably looking after the baby. We get the impression that she would face more judgment as a woman than her brother would face for doing the same thing. This being said, her brother is also deemed improper for his actions. The demands of propriety also mean that Helen is not able to tell her own son that she is his mother. As such, he thinks that she is his aunt.
War
Michael enlists in World War I in this short story, and the narrator describes how the war as being like a "holocaust", and describes how the conditions were "breeding meningitis through living overcrowdedly in damp tents." As such, Kipling focuses on the huge scale of deaths caused by World War I. This includes the death of Michael, who writes to Helen about how there is "no need to worry," before being killed by a shell.
This story also explores the experiences of loved ones at home, saying that "the village was old in experience of war." This suggests that almost everyone was affected by warfare, including Helen, whose "world had stood still", when she finally found out about the fate of her son. As such, this short story details the immense loss during World War I, and the impact this had on families.
Religion
First, we are told that Michael is christened by the Rector, which is the first suggestion of Christianity in the text. Later, when Helen is visiting Michael's grave she sees a gardener, who is the representation of Christ. As Helen is struggling to find the grave, the gardener helps her, saying "come with me... and I will show you where your son lies." The fact that the gardener knows that Michael is Helen's son represents the fact that Christ knows everything. The gardener is also depicted as a sympathetic and compassionate figure, as he looked at her "with infinite compassion." As such, this short story gives a positive view of Christianity as providing people with kindness, compassion and hope.
