What are the motifs in Arsenic and Old Lace by Joseph Kesselring?

Murder and death are recurring ideas in the play that has a remarkably high body count, with 25 separate victims being listed between Jonathan and the sisters. The play starts with a murder just having been committed, and ends with one just about to be committed, although no murder is ever shown as it happens. Central to the comedy is the fact that while we view Jonathan’s murders as being crimes, we look at Abby and Martha’s killings – as do they – as kindnesses.