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Chapter 3
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
Teddy and Chuck step outside Rachel’s room and look for possible exit routes. Dr. Cawley explains that the only way out of the building is back the way they came. Rachel would not have had access to the roof, though Dr. Cawley and his team checked it anyway. They also checked all of the other rooms in the institution and could not find her anywhere. A table sits in front of the stairs leading away from Rachel’s room. Teddy asks Dr. Cawley whether someone watches the stairs at night. Dr. Cawley confirms that someone is always on guard. He also says Ganton was there on the night of Rachel’s escape.
As Teddy and Chuck’s tour of the facility continues, Rachel’s escape looks more and more impossible, assuming everything Dr. Cawley says about the hospital’s security is true. She would have had to break out of her room, bypass multiple security checkpoints, and fool multiple guards to get out of the hospital, all while barefoot. As such, something about the case is not adding up, and Dr. Cawley’s behavior suggests he knows something he is not saying.
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Themes
Teddy and Chuck continue following the path Rachel must have taken. They walk past the orderly table and down the stairs to the main living area, where the patients typically spend their evenings. Dr. Cawley explains that group therapy was held in the area the night of Rachel’s escape, and afterward, several orderlies stuck around to play a game of cards.
The orderlies are yet another group of people Rachel would have had to bypass to make her escape. The only other explanation, assuming Rachel escaped on her own, is that Dr. Cawley is mistaken—or lying—about the potential paths out of the building.
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Then, Dr. Cawley points out the building's various exits from the main living area. He assures Teddy and Chuck that they all had guards on duty the night of Rachel’s disappearance. Afterward, Dr. Cawley dismisses himself for a meeting. He asks that Teddy and Chuck find McPherson if they have any questions while he is away. As Dr. Cawley walks away, Teddy looks at Chuck and says everything about the situation feels like an inside job.
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When the afternoon rolls around, Teddy and Chuck join the search party to help look for Rachel. During the search, Teddy spots a few cave openings and asks McPherson if his team has checked them. McPherson points out that there is no way Rachel could have made it down to the caves without shoes. There are plants full of thorns surrounding the entrance, and Rachel would have had to get through them after a long and strenuous hike. Teddy also notices guards with rifles posted outside of the lighthouse. He points them out to Chuck, who raises his eyebrows knowingly.
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Teddy and Chuck eat dinner alone and discuss the case. Neither has a sense of what is going on, though they sense Dr. Cawley and his staff have not been forthcoming with them. Next, Teddy and Chuck plan to question the staff, though they wonder how much help they will be.
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Teddy and Chuck gather the staff and introduce themselves. They start to go over the facts of the case. One staff member suggests that Rachel could have tried to swim away from the island. However, another quickly shuts the idea down; if Rachel had tried to swim, she would have failed, and they would have found her body by now. As Teddy and Chuck speak to the staff, they notice the staff seems disinterested. Teddy is surprised; given that a dangerous patient is on the loose, he feels like the staff should care more than they seem to.
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Teddy and Chuck question the staff but do not learn any useful information. One orderly admits that he stepped away from his post for a minute to use the bathroom, but that does not explain how Rachel could have slipped by everyone else. During the questioning, Teddy asks about Dr. Sheehan, who was on duty the night of Rachel's escape. No one from the staff says anything about Dr. Sheehan, so Dr. Cawley speaks up and says that Dr. Sheehan left on the morning ferry to go on vacation. Dr. Cawley promises to give Teddy Dr. Sheehan's notes, but unfortunately, Teddy will not be able to question him.
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Teddy asks McPherson why he would approve Dr. Sheehan's leave, given the circumstances. McPherson and Dr. Cawley downplay Dr. Sheehan's departure, but the breach in procedure appalls Teddy regardless of their responses. Teddy asks for a phone number and a phone so he can speak to Dr. Sheehan. Dr. Cawley promises to get both things for him. However, when he checks the phone, he discovers that the island's communications systems are down because of the storm.
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Once Teddy and Chuck are away from everyone else, they express their anger about the case. Both feel like Dr. Cawley and his team are lying about nearly everything. Additionally, the incoming storm will surely trap them on the island for some time without any access to the outside world. Chuck airs a theory about Dr. Sheehan taking Rachel off the island so they could live together as lovers. Teddy admits it is possible but wonders why everyone would help cover for Dr. Sheehan.
