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Chapter 1
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Shutter Island, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Mental Illness and Delusion
Conspiracy and Paranoia
Guilt and Grief
Violence and War
Isolation
Summary
Analysis
When Teddy and Chuck arrive on Shutter Island, Deputy Warden McPherson greets them. The deputy is a young man with blond hair who Teddy thinks looks like a Texan. McPherson is surrounded by his orderlies, most of whom are Black. Teddy notes that the few white men there look malnourished and dead in the face. McPherson asks Teddy and Chuck for identification, and they produce their U.S. marshal badges. McPherson says he has never seen a U.S. marshal badge before.
The fact that Teddy and Chuck are U.S. marshals suggests they have come to the island for more than just a missing woman. After all, the federal government would not send multiple agents to recover a single woman missing from a mental institution. Notoriously, in the 1950s, the federal government—as well as most state governments—cared very little about what was going on with such institutions, which is a significant reason why there was such widespread abuse.
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Teddy looks around and sees the beach covered with driftwood, mollusk skeletons, dead fish, and whatever trash managed to find its way to the island. Teddy thinks Dolores would enjoy the island, but all Teddy can think about is the danger of the sea. As the ferry leaves, Teddy promises to call when he needs a pickup. He knows the storm could cause a delay but is not especially worried about it.
Other than Chuck and the orderlies, everything Teddy sees when he looks around the island is dead—yet another ominous sign. Additionally, the warning of severe weather foreshadows the literal and metaphorical storm Teddy and Chuck will find themselves in.
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McPherson takes Teddy and Chuck up to the hospital's main building. On the way, they notice armed guards everywhere, and McPherson tells them it is a maximum security institution. He also tells them Ashecliffe operates under dual charters, including the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health. As they walk, McPherson also points out the warden, who reminds Teddy of a soldier on a holy crusade. He wears a gold badge and walks with his head held high. McPherson promises Teddy and Chuck they will meet the warden later. Teddy wonders why they don't talk to him immediately but quickly lets it go.
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Before going any further, McPherson tells Teddy and Chuck the most important rules of the island. First and foremost, they are only allowed to interact with the institution's patients with an orderly present. Then, McPherson points out which building is which—Ward A is the male ward, Ward B is the female ward, and Ward C is the staff quarters. Ward C is also what used to be Fort Walton and is strictly off-limits.
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Additionally, McPherson informs Teddy and Chuck that they must surrender their firearms. Teddy briefly puts up a fight, but McPherson quickly shuts him down, and, in the end, he and Chuck surrender their guns. McPherson tells them he will have their weapons placed in the warden's office, where they can retrieve them once they are ready to depart.
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Once they settle the gun business, McPherson offers to take Teddy and Chuck to see Dr. Cawley, the Chief of Staff on Shutter Island. McPherson walks them around the outside of Ward A, where they see a number of patients and orderlies. The patients are outside tending to plants, though they are manacled and surrounded by orderlies. As they walk, McPherson tells Teddy about the island's previous history as an army post and a prisoner of war camp.
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Peeking above the institution is the old lighthouse; Teddy notices it and questions McPherson. McPherson says it is a treatment facility for sewage, which is necessary because of how much trash ends up in the water. McPherson also points out a building that used to be the commander's quarters for the Union Army, though now Dr. Cawley and the warden occupy it. While they walk and talk, Teddy spots a female patient gardening. She is almost bald, and she notices Teddy as she walks by. Their eyes meet, and she puts a finger to her lips, smiles, and shakes her head. As she does, Teddy sees a red scar along her throat.
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When Teddy tunes back into his conversation with McPherson, the latter is talking about Dr. Cawley’s credentials. Evidently, he is one of the most important doctors in his field. Scotland Yard, MI5, and the OSS regularly consult him. When Teddy asks what those institutions would want with a psychiatrist, McPherson says it is war-related and classified.
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Together, McPherson, Teddy, and Chuck go through several security checkpoints. When Chuck comments on the extreme security measures, McPherson reminds him that the institution takes on only the most severe cases and says there is no other place like it in the United States. Teddy asks if a man named Vincent Gryce is on the island. Gryce is a criminal who killed all his relatives, scalped them, and then made hats out of their scalps.
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McPherson confirms that they are holding Gryce on the island. According to McPherson, the government would have executed Gryce if it was not for Shutter Island. He is happy Shutter Island exists because it gives him and his people a chance to study Gryce, treat him as humanely as possible, and hopefully figure out a solution. As they arrive at Dr. Cawley's office, Chuck expresses skepticism about McPherson's thesis.
