Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Silent Patient, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Empathy, Identification, and Boundaries
Tragedy and Destiny
Honesty vs. Deception
Childhood Trauma
Silence vs. “The Talking Cure”
Summary
Analysis
Stephanie leads a meeting in Diomedes’s office. She is angry that Alicia has been allowed to paint, and she insists that Alicia now be put in seclusion for the safety of the other patients. Theo protests that putting Alicia in seclusion is “barbaric”—“we need to keep talking to her. We need to understand”—but Stephanie is firm. Much to Theo’s chagrin, Christian backs Stephanie up on every point.
Theo’s faith in talking makes sense, given that he feels Ruth’s “talking cure” approach to therapy saved his life—but how does “talking” to Alicia, “the silent patient,” help?
Themes
Christian blames Theo for Alicia’s attack, and though Diomedes is kinder, he agrees that they have tried to do “too much, too soon.” Though Theo and Indira both insists that over-medicating Alicia is not the solution, Diomedes is worried that one more violent incident will ensure that the Grove is shut down. Theo begs to be allowed to continue with his therapy, but Diomedes gives him a final answer—no.
Diomedes has always been on Theo’s side, aiding him in his quest to understand Alicia and protecting him when tension with Christian comes to the fore. That even Diomedes feels Theo needs to stop is telling: to everyone on the outside, it is clear that Theo’s work with Alicia hurts both patient and therapist more than it helps.
Themes
