The Silent Patient Part II, Chapters 16 - 34
Theo regains consciousness to find Paul Rose standing over him with a baseball bat. He had attacked Theo because he thought Theo was a journalist but had confirmed that Theo was a psycho-therapist by way of his ID card. He takes Theo into the house and offers him some whiskey and aspirin for the splitting headache that Theo now has. Paul Rose informs Theo that he and Alicia had lived together since the time of her mother’s death. At the time, Lydia, Paul’s mother, had moved in with her brother, Vernon, to help him raise his daughter after his wife Eva, had killed herself. Later onwards, Vernon had also taken his own life. Eventually, Alicia lost touch with the family, and Paul believed that this was because of Gabriel who had been far too possessive about Alicia. Theo hears heavy thudding from the other room, and Paul Rose goes to check on his mother, Lydia Rose. The morbidly obese woman calls them into her decrepit room. Theo immediately realizes that Lydia Rose is mad and severely verbally abusive to her son. She berates him for speaking to Theo, and upon learning that he is Alicia’s psychotherapist, she calls Alicia a bitch. She makes mention of a portrait that Alicia had made of her and begins to work herself into a fit of anger so Paul suggests that Theo leave then.
At home, Theo is tortured by his knowledge of Kathy’s affair, and his inability to raise the matter with her. He attempts to find other pieces of evidence that indicate her infidelity but he finds none. He begins to suspect that her secret lover is her director, Tony, who she has always spoken of but never allowed him to meet. She mentions a meeting with one of her old friends the following Thursday, and he suspects that this is an excuse to meet her lover. Theo decides on following her to the meeting.
He goes to see Alicia’s work and meets Jean-Felix, who introduces himself as one of Alicia’s closest friends. He had been to art school with her, and they had painted walls together until Alicia became an artist. Jean-Felix had begun to operate an art gallery where he featured her work. He had been close to Alicia, but he believes that Gabriel disliked their association. Jean-Felix helps Theo in understanding that Alicia’s suicide attempt after he father’s death had not been an act of love since Alicia had deeply despised her father. He takes Theo through Alicia’s most recent set of paintings that feature Gabriel as Jesus, Aunt Lydia as a gruesome monster, and Alicia herself as Alcestis. Theo notes that Jean-Felix seems to have very strong feelings about Alicia but they seem to be focused on her art rather than her. Jean suggests that Theo get Alicia talking by offering her an opportunity to paint, and he also strongly recommends that Theo read the play Alcestis by Euripides. Theo reads Alcestis and is surprised to discover that the heroine of the play does not speak to her husband after she is rescued from the world of the dead by Heracles.
In another set of excerpts from Alicia’s diary, readers learn that Paul Rose had called Alicia at the beginning of August, and insisted upon seeing her. He had turned up in a worried state to talk about his gambling problem that had led him to owe some people twenty thousand pounds. He asks her for help, and she agrees to assist him with reluctance as she gives him some money. Alicia feels guilty about Paul’s state because he had continued to live with his mother. She also sees Jean-Felix later onwards and tolerates his presence as he watches her paint while passing snide comments about Gabriel. She can’t stand it any further and tells him that she has decided to end their professional engagement despite his vehement protests. He convinces her to come to see a play with him, Alcestis, and she agrees. Gabriel criticizes her for being too soft on both Paul and Jean, he believes that Alicia is scared of Jean, and she secretly agrees with him.
Theo asks Diomedes about the play as he doesn’t quite understand the silence of Alcestis. Diomedes argues that Alcestis does not speak because she has been betrayed, and is in a murderous rage. Theo also requests arrangements to have Alicia paint on her own, Diomedes allows it and so does the art therapist, Rowenna. Theo creates a private studio for her with Yuri’s help and secures her old art supplies from Jean-Felix, who is almost hungry for any future paintings that Alicia might create. Alicia is extremely pleased with the setup and spends a great amount of time working on a new painting. She paints a picture of the grove on fire, with two figures close to it. Alicia is being carried by Theo, although it isn’t clear whether he is rescuing her or throwing her into the flames.
Theo tries to find the man Kathy is cheating on him with so he follows her after rehearsal, but he is disappointed to find her meeting her friend, Nicole.
Theo runs into Barbara, Alicia’s neighbor who had reported the sound of gunshots to the police on the night of the murder. Barbara claims that she and Alicia were very close and that she often comes into see her. Theo goes to her house to collect some more information, he learns that Alicia had indeed seen a doctor after her father’s death, but never mentioned a name. She believes that Alicia is not guilty of the murder and that there is a mysterious individual involved. Barbara reveals that Alicia believed someone had been following her and watching the house. She even sent Barbara a picture, but the picture did not truly reveal anything.
Back at the Grove, Alicia stabs Elif in the eye with a paintbrush, and Theo learns that this had occurred because Elif defaced her painting and told her that Theo loved her. Diomedes and the ward manager agree that the grove cannot risk such instances of violence, so her therapy is halted. Alicia is put back on heavy medication and put in seclusion. In the last session, Theo tells her that he wished she had tried harder and a thoroughly drugged Alicia gives him her diary and non-verbally expresses her desire that he should read it.
Analysis
Theo begins to play the role of a detective as he attempts to uncover the details of Alicia’s life. Readers are exposed to a confusing portrait of Alicia, whose diary is filled with love and tenderness, while Max describes her as a violent and unstable personality. It is impossible to believe Max’s description of Alicia since readers are already aware of the true relationship between Alicia and Max. This sequence of events is a perfect example of how the author expertly uses the Epistolary technique to create engagement for the reader. The story is made more exciting through the diary entries, as readers are already aware of information that Theo is still trying to uncover.
Betrayal is another major theme of this novel, and this section focuses on the love that idolizes. Theo and Alicia are both in relationships in which they idealize their partners. Alicia quite literally paints her husband in the image of Jesus, while Theo often describes his wife as being perfect, and a greek goddess. The author foreshadows Gabriel’s betrayal of Alicia through Theo’s discovery of Kathy’s infidelity. Like any good mystery novel, The Silent Patient includes masterful use of red herrings, which are clues that are meant to distract the reader away from the truly important ones. The confusion about the true nature of the crime is further heightened as we learn about the numerous complex relationships in Alicia’s life that make everyone suspect. Theo is uninterested in discovering the details of the murder but focuses his actions on finding out why she is silent. This is because he, unlike the reader, is already aware of the circumstances of the murder.
