The most obvious commonality in all of Richard Selzer's essays is the central theme of surgery. Two of the three are narratives about experiences he encountered in his line of work, while the third is a detailed description and personification of a scalpel. Through these essays, he tried to establish himself to the reader as both a surgeon and a writer. These two professions constitute his meaning in life.
Through writing he attempts to give the reader a clear view of what it means to be a surgeon. For him, a surgeon is someone who holds the line between life and death. To be a surgeon, it is to be a "craftsman"; not anyone can be a surgeon. There is the "endless harsh novitiate of training, much fatigue, much sacrifice." The act of surgery is like a ritual, almost a holy event taking place. Now that "the priestliness of [his] profession has even been impressed" on him, he is trying to give the audience the same impression through his writing.
In addition to his professional career, surgery has been a major factor in Richard Selzer's personal life. In all of his essays, he briefly mentions his family just once while he goes delves into his patients" extrinsic and intrinsic characteristics. He mentions his Uncle taking him to a Masked Marvel wrestling match, who is now his patient. Although he was well aware of his Uncle's condition when he gets excited, he only makes a small comment, "take a pill, please," as if just an afterthought. However, when it comes to others, such as the Masked Marvel, he is "on his feet, shouting" to help the Masked Marvel.
