Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Silence of the Lambs, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Sexism and Law Enforcement
The Nature of Evil
Class and Shame
Manipulation
Summary
Analysis
Clarice Starling, an FBI agent in training, leaves the firing range at Quantico and walks to Section Chief Jack Crawford’s office. Jack Crawford leads the Behavior Science unit of the FBI, which Starling has wanted to join since she was a young girl. Crawford also taught a course Starling took in college at UVA. Starling tried to connect with Crawford after her time at UVA, but he never responded, nor has he paid her much attention since she arrived at Quantico.
The Silence of the Lambs is known for being one of the first novels to prominently feature a woman in law enforcement. Novels and television about law enforcement in the 1980s featured male protagonists, many of whom were hyper-masculine. The depiction of gender in The Silence of the Lambs is in conversation with these other works and is a constant theme throughout the novel. The higher-ups at the FBI, such as Jack Crawford, are exclusively men, and Starling must court their favor to advance her career. As Starling goes to speak with Crawford, the possibility that he is biased against her because of her gender is in the back of her mind.
Themes
When Starling sees Crawford, she notices he looks more haggard than she remembers. She knows the Behavior Science unit has been in hot water lately, so leading it must not be easy. Crawford tells Starling he has a job for her. Quickly, they review Starling’s credentials; she was a double major in psychology and criminology with several months of hands-on experience in a mental health institute. Additionally, she is near the top of her class at Quantico.
The Silence of the Lambs takes place in the 1980s, a time when serial killers were at the forefront of the public’s mind. The news commonly discussed cases like those of the murderers Ted Bundy and Richard Ramirez (“The Night Stalker”), and this influenced the art of the time. In this novel, Harris designed his killer around figures like Bundy and Ed Gein. The public interest in serial killers at this time led to much scrutiny of the FBI, which is one reason why Crawford looks more worn than Starling remembers.
Themes
Crawford asks Starling if she knows about VI-CAP (the Violent Criminal Apprehension Program), a database the FBI is working on. Starling says she does. Crawford tells her that the program has turned into a lot of paperwork, and for a moment, Starling worries that he will offer a job that will shackle her to the office rather than the field. She knows such things happen to women at the FBI.
Throughout the novel, Harris uses accurate FBI terminology and programs to build out his world. VI-CAP, for instance, is an actual database that the FBI still uses. Additionally, this section demonstrates Starling’s justified wariness about what Crawford has in store for her. She knows the field is still considered a “man’s job” and wants to ensure Crawford does not discount her because of her gender.
Themes
However, Crawford has something else in mind. He wants Starling to visit the serial killer Hannibal Lecter—also known as Hannibal the Cannibal—in a mental institution and ask him questions from a questionnaire. When Starling says she will take the job, Crawford gives her several warnings. Apparently, Lecter is incredibly dangerous, even in jail, and has disfigured one of his nurses. He is also brilliant and can appear benign. Before he went to the mental institution, Lecter was a psychologist, and he still devotes much of his time to the field. However, Crawford assures Starling that he is a monster who can and will hurt her if she is not careful.
The Silence of the Lambs is a sequel to Harris’s second novel, Red Dragon (1981). Although Starling is a new character for Harris, several other characters in this book also appeared in Red Dragon, including Jack Crawford, Will Graham, and Hannibal Lecter. Many of these characters also appear in Harris’s next book Hannibal (1999), and his prequel novel, Hannibal Rising (2006). As one can tell from the names of these other novels, Hannibal Lecter is the key figure in all of these stories and remains Harris’s best-known creation. Here, Crawford presents Lecter as a menace before he appears on the page.
Themes
Get the entire The Silence of the Lambs LitChart as a printable PDF.
