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Chapter 23
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
Mom and Dad come with Sarah to visit the ward later that day. Sarah is excited at all the “crazies” she sees, although her parents tell her not to point. Sarah asks if J/C is a “transvestite.” J/C uses a masculine voice and introduces himself as Charles. Dad asks J/C why he’s in the ward, a question that embarrasses Craig, but J/C is happy to explain that he’s bipolar.
Sarah doesn’t intend her language to be hurtful. Her behavior in this scene instead seems to reflect her youth and inexperience. Her observations about the psychiatric hospital also suggest how to a mentally healthy person, the world of mental illness might seem strange or even exotic.
Themes
Mom makes a list of things to bring him next time. Mom and Dad are happy to hear that Craig ate all his lunch. They leave, wishing Craig luck, and Craig spends the rest of the day playing cards with Armelio.
This passage seems to show that just by acknowledging his suicidal depression and taking the first step toward solving it (going to the psychiatric hospital), Craig has managed to get back in touch with his old self, regaining his ability to eat and be social with people.
Themes
