Shutter Island

Teddy has started to feel strange by the time he makes it to Cawley’s house, where he is met by the warden. He struggles to focus as the warden speaks philosophically about how violence reflects the natural order of things. “‘God loves violence,’” he explains before determining that Teddy is “‘as violent as they come’” (278-279). Teddy denies it, but the warden tells Teddy he looks forward to the carnage of their inevitable “‘final dance’” (282).

After their strange conversation, Teddy returns to the hospital in search of Cawley. Cawley tells Teddy now that the hurricane is over, he will be able to leave on the first ferry off the island. Teddy jokes that he will catch it as long as someone “‘wakes us up’” (286). Cawley asks Teddy if he knew anything about an unidentified man who slipped into Ward C earlier that day to talk with George Noyce. Teddy plays innocent and instead asks Cawley if a there is a patient named Andrew Laeddis on the island. Cawley says no, but he stops Teddy to ask who he meant by “‘us’” earlier. Teddy begins to get frustrated since he is obviously referring to Chuck. Confused, Cawley tells Teddy that he has no partner. Teddy came to Shutter Island alone.

Teddy looks at Cawley in shock, but when he sees Cawley’s cold gaze, he knows he is being set up. Cawley probes Teddy about his supposed “partner” to try and corner him, but Teddy responds with something the real Rachel Solando told him. “‘Insane men deny they’re insane,’” Teddy says, and Cawley smiles as he realizes Teddy’s onto his game (292). Cawley then delivers a thinly -threat; he tells Teddy he (Cawley) worked hard to build Ashecliffe, and while many might not understand the hospital’s work, Cawley believes it is important enough to fight for.

Teddy returns to his room where he finds Trey Washington, his roommate and one of Ashecliffe’s orderlies. He confronts Washington about the fact that everyone on the island seems to tell the same lies, and asks Washington about Chuck, whom they had played poker with the evening before. Washington initially denies Chuck’s existence, but when Teddy resorts to intimidation, he caves. He tells Teddy he needs to get off Shutter Island as soon as possible. He reveals that one of the electric fences surrounding Asheville was broken in the storm, and he tells Teddy the ferry schedules. Teddy leaves immediately and makes his way to the cave where he first met the real Rachel, but all he finds are the remnants of a fire. The last thing he notices as he lays down to sleep is his thumb twitching, a sign that the neurotropic narcotics he was given are taking effect. 

Chapter Twenty marks the beginning of the fourth—and final—section of Shutter Island, titled “Day 4: The Bad Sailor.” Teddy is once again lost in a dream. He and his father, his mother, Chuck, and Dolores are in a kitchen discussing Christmas gifts. Rachel and Laeddis—both of whom are naked—enter the kitchen as Teddy’s father, his mother, and Chuck leave. Dolores begins giving Teddy oral sex as Rachel and Laeddis pass into a nearby bedroom, and Teddy hears the sounds of their lovemaking carry down the hall.

Teddy wakes up to the sound of the warden telling his guards that Teddy is extremely dangerous and gives them permission to shoot on sight. The men search the beach outside the cave entrance but find nothing, and Teddy waits for them to leave before he makes his way toward the ferry. Unfortunately, the effects of the medication are getting worse, and Teddy feels “foggy” and “thick-tongued” even after a night of sleep (307). But he keeps moving until he finds the ferry. Orderlies are unloading the cargo while guards watch the perimeter. Teddy finds Cawley’s car and decides to create a distraction by setting it on fire. Teddy slips into the frigid ocean and thinks he sees the little girl from his dream floating underneath the water. He makes his way to the ferry anyway, where he overhears the warden and Cawley deciding to dock the boat until they find Teddy. When he realizes he will not be leaving the island, he decides to go to the lighthouse in the hope of rescuing Chuck.

Teddy incapacitates the first guard he sees, takes his rifle, and makes his way into the lighthouse while knocking out guards along the way. He has a mental conversation with Dolores as he sneaks through the building in search of Chuck, and when Teddy comes to the very last door, Dolores tells him to run. But Teddy knows he has no choice but to push through, and when he opens the last door, Cawley greets him with something Dolores said in one of his dreams: “‘Why you all wet, baby?’” (317)