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
Craig goes to meet with Dr. Mahmoud. He’s eager to get out, not wanting to miss school, but Dr. Mahmoud urges him to be patient. Craig explains his concept of a Fake Shift—of seeming to feel better when he isn’t actually better. Dr. Mahmoud explains that he can’t “cure” Craig’s symptoms: he can only help Craig “manage” them. Dr. Mahmoud says they should get Craig’s usual therapist to come down, and Dr. Mahmoud is happy to hear it’s Dr. Minerva, whom he knows.
The difference between curing and managing symptoms is central to Craig’s new understanding of his mental health. The term “managing” puts greater emphasis on how dealing with the symptoms of mental health will be an everyday affair rather than something that gets fixed after one stay in a psychiatric hospital.
Themes
