Secrets Themes

Throughout the protagonist’s childhood, his Great Aunt Mary admonishes him, “don’t be so inquisitive.” “Secrets” asks readers to consider this warning: is it good to question everything? Or are there some instances when unbridled curiosity does more harm than good? By demonstrating how the protagonist’s youthful curiosity leads him to lose Aunt Mary’s trust forever, “Secrets” suggests that curiosity can be harmful if it is not paired with respect for others’ privacy, and that…

“Secrets” suggests that love is the only lasting legacy of a person’s life after their death. In the first scene, as the protagonist sees his Great Aunt Mary on her death bed, he observes how much of her personality has already been lost in her declining health. Though devoutly Catholic, Mary cannot grip the crucifix her family has placed in her hands. And though devoted to keeping her appearance impeccably neat, in death, Mary has…

The main characters in “Secrets” process their grief by compartmentalizing their emotions. While this response perhaps helps them survive in the short term, the story suggests that in order to properly heal from their trauma, the characters must allow themselves to truly feel their grief. All three of the story’s major characters deal with grief by compartmentalizing and “freezing” their emotions. The story opens with the protagonist grieving the imminent death of his Great Aunt…