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Chapter 7
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Danish Girl, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Gender Transitioning
Self-Transformation
Freedom and Constraint
Love and Acceptance
Courage
Loss and Grief
Summary
Analysis
In August, Greta and Einar go to the south of France for a holiday. They rent an apartment from an American expatriate and garment manufacturer. One afternoon, a hot gust of wind knocks over a Chinese screen in the living room, revealing a rack of sample dresses. Einar looks at his wife and asks if they can invite Lili for a visit. Greta has, thus far, always welcomed Lili, treating her like an “amusing foreign friend” even when she’s tired of pressed into service as a watchful chaperone. Moreover, she doesn’t have it in her nature to contradict her husband. She felt the same way about Teddy. And besides, Lili is quickly becoming her favorite subject and the muse directing the dramatic shift in her artistic style. Greta says yes.
The more time Einar spends as Lili, the more right Lili feels—both to him and to Greta. For Greta, this means a sacrifice, because she must trade Einar for Lili. In contrast, Einar is only too happy to put his male persona aside and returns to being Lili with an obvious sense of relief. But love inspires Greta to make sacrifices. And she’s changing, too, growing as an artist thanks in part to Lili.
Themes
A few nights later, Greta fidgets with her wedding rings while she and Lili are walking to a restaurant for dinner. She has one on each hand, because she never removed the one that Teddy placed on her left hand and the Danes wear theirs on the right. Einar knows very little about Teddy, because Greta keeps her memories to herself.
It's clear by now that Einar is well on the path to transitioning fully into Lili. The connection Greta still feels with her deceased first husband hints at how difficult this will be for her since it will entail the loss of Einar as Einar.
Themes
Just before they arrive at the restaurant, Greta tells Lili that they’ll be dining with Hans, with whom the Parisian art critic helpfully put her in touch. Lili becomes extremely nervous, and—for a moment—Greta is too. But she assures herself and Lili that Hans will never realize the truth. Lili is a distinct person, not just a dressed-up Einar. Besides, Hans and Einar haven’t seen each other since they were teenagers. Hans is a much bigger, stronger man than Greta expected. He is precise in his habits and he still loves tennis. He falls into an comfortable and animated discussion with Lili about Bluetooth.
Themes
The next morning, Greta is surprised to find herself in bed not with Einar but Lili, still dressed in her summer camisole. It’s the first time she’s shared a bed with Lili, and Greta wonders if she could kiss Lili. She has always felt odd, like she did something inappropriate, after her infrequent sexual encounters with Einar. Now, she admires Lili’s shapely body.
Themes
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Greta falls back asleep and wakes up hours later as Lili tries to climb into bed with a cup of coffee in each hand. One spills, staining the sheet. That afternoon, while Einar is bathing, Greta takes the sheet onto the terrace and lights it on fire. Once, she set Teddy’s workshop on fire. It was an accident, but it was still devastating, as the fire consumed everything: his records, his kilns, hundreds of completed pieces. As they watched Teddy’s workshop burn to the ground, Teddy an “ominous cough” caught in Teddy’s throat.
Themes
