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Chapter 18
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in It’s Kind of a Funny Story, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Mental Health
Art and Self-Discovery
Peer Pressure vs. Self-Empowerment
Friendship and Romance
Summary
Analysis
Smitty, a day-time director in the psychiatric wing, takes Craig’s vitals. Craig fills out another questionnaire and marks the highest score for every sign of depression, although he lies and claims he doesn’t smoke pot. A nurse named Monica comes in to explain that a doctor will discharge Craig after they come up with a discharge plan. It could be anywhere from two days to a month, although after five days, Craig can write a letter if he feels he doesn’t belong.
This passage seems to be a response to some other depictions of mental health institutes—such as One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest—that depict mental institutions as a prison-like place that patients can’t escape. Craig learns that he has options to leave if he wants to, suggesting that the professionals in the hospital really do want to help him rather than just trapping him.
Themes
Craig hands over his cell phone. He also hands over his keys—he isn’t allowed to have any sharp objects. A gray-haired man named Bobby who’s wearing a Marvin the Martian sweatshirt comes over and says it’s time to give Craig the tour.
By relinquishing his cell phone, Craig temporarily cuts off his connection with the outside world, which he currently has an unhealthy relationship with because he keeps comparing himself unfavorably to his friends. Letting go of his unhealthy relationship to outside stressors is an early step toward recovery.
Themes
