What is the theme in The Wanting Seed by Anthony Burgess?

The will to survive is another theme in the story. Famine becomes so intense in this novel that not only do people begin openly preying upon one another, but eventually the only way for almost anyone to survive is by cannibalism. This is the final affront, in that people cannot dehumanize themselves any further than by consuming each other. Stories of people stuck in situations that force them to either become cannibals or starve to death have a long history, but Anthony Burgess expands that rare occurrence into a global phenomenon, making it the norm for almost everyone. In so doing, he asks how low people will stoop in their behavior to survive.