Shutter Island discussion

Someone help me...

Am I correct to conclude Teddy regressed again. He's going have "the surgery." Am I right?

I was gripped for the entire book. Then, I'm saying, "What?" with the last three pages.

Me too. It confused me. I never reread books, I may decide I need to reread this one.

I read it as Teddy really was crazy, and he was going to have to have the lobotomy because he wasn't progressing and was too dangerous to leave alone. It seemed pretty cut and dried to me, so I was shocked to talk to people who honestly thought it was some kind of weird conspiracy, that he actually was a detective there to investigate a crime and was being manipulated to become part of some psychological experiment. I guess it's one of those books that's left to the reader's interpretation. Whatever you see is what happened.

I agree with you, I thought he was really crazy. I didn't think it was a conspiracy at all.

@Russell: I finished Shutter Island yesterday and I must say I was a little puzzled too. however, yes, i think he was crazy - i must say the author left it quite open to interpretation, tho. i might be too old-fashioned to appreciate this sort of thing ^_^

Great book. Never saw the ending coming. I really need to reread it.

Anyway, It seemed that Teddy had gone crazy again,and they decided to do the lobotomy surgery on him.

I understood the whole book. The last 3 pages however were really confusing. All of a sudden I was like what???????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had to read it again and again and I still don't understand it.

I read it as Teddy was still crazy. Their experiment didn't work and now he needed to have the surgery. Pretty cut and dry from my standpoint.

i took it the same way as i took the movie, teddy preferred to be lobotomised than live with the memories. the movie makes that much clearer though

I took the movie that way, but not the book. When I first read the book it didn't even cross my mind. Then when I saw the movie, I went back and re-read the book for the third time, but didn't get any hint of the movie ending in the book itself.

My understanding is that the movie reinterpreted the book to fit what Scorcese wanted to do. If the book ending was originally meant to be how the movie ended, it wasn't made clear at all. I thought the movie made it very clear but Lehane kept things more (deliberately?) ambiguous.

Here's a little article where Lehane gives his take on the movie ending. I think it's pretty clear the movie ending is different than how Lehane imagined it.

http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2010/03/03/...

I read the book, knowing the movie was coming and being played by Leonardo DiCaprio. So as I was reading I pictured him as the main character. I loved the book and was thrilled with the movie.

In fact, almost got into a fight with a drunk guy in the theater, who was disappointed that there was not any blood and guts, he did not think it was a thriller but more of action film...

I don't think that Teddy regressed again. I think that he was acting like he had regressed again because he knew what the consequence would be. He couldn't live with himself anymore after realizing the truth. He was in a way committing suicide. I seriously had to think about this for like an hour before I could draw a conclusion and I really hated myself for staying up til like 3 AM reading it. I had work at 5:30 that morning, hahaha!

I found it interesting that the book never stopped calling him Teddy. It never once said "Andrew said" this lead me to believe that he really wasn't Andrew but was made to think he was through the asprin and cigarettes they had exposed into his system, but then again there is much evidence that says otherwise. I don't know I guess the ending is how ever you see fit.

I also caught that it called him Teddy the whole time. However, in the last few dreams, his wife called him Andrew. That part confused me more than the ending. I wondered if we were supposed to think he was still acting as Eddie, ie, not believing he was Andrew, or what.

The whole beauty of the book is that you see it from "Teddy"'s viewpoint. In fact, it questions the whole idea of perceived reality-is it concrete or what is created by our minds?

I loved the ambiguity of the book, by the way. I enjoy endings which leave the reader dangling, prompting him to think.

I think "Teddy" couldn't bear to remember what happened to his family.He faked his relapse so that the lobotomy would wipe away the memory and guilt.

Judy wrote: "I think "Teddy" couldn't bear to remember what happened to his family.He faked his relapse so that the lobotomy would wipe away the memory and guilt."

That's how it seemed in the movie. In the book, I thought it seemed more like a real relapse.

Russell wrote: "Someone help me...

Am I correct to conclude Teddy regressed again. He's going have "the surgery." Am I right?

I was gripped for the entire book. Then, I'm saying, "What?" with the last thr..."


yeah, i think so too. it seems like he went into another batch of regression issues,but im not so sure if they will throw him to the whole surgery plan, they might just go restrain him for awhile till his sober again :)

I think this is the whole idea of the book - the story unfolds with every page giving a new twist, and when you finally think you have grasped the message and the backbone of the book the last three pages are there to DELIBERATELY confuse you. Teddy wakes up after his medicated sleep and talks to Chuck. Or it can easily be the situation when he believes he has left his past behind, but he actually did not. Ambiguity is an intention. And that's what I really liked about the book. And gritty, gritty, atmospheric narrative. Oh, and don't forget the third person unreliable narrator with a shifting personal perspective. This narrator a true rare gem in fiction.

I say hes gonna get the surgery .i just finishd this book i liked it a lot i wish now though that i would have read it before i saw the movie it would have been a litlle more mind boggling.

In my opinion, Teddy definitely regressed and the last three pages were his life after once again tricking himself into believing that he's Teddy. Notice that the book didn't describe him as Teddy OR Andrew until it described Dr. Sheehan as Chuck, basically showing that Teddy in fact believed himself to be Teddy once again like the rest of the book. In the previous chapter, he was told of a similar regression where he lost all his progress in realizing who he was 9 months ago. I believe that in the ending of the book that Teddy went through a similar regression and was getting lobotomized to not be a threat to the world.

My opinion, is that Teddy really was crazy. However, after realizing that he was no longer under the delusion of being a respected and revered detective, and learning that he had committed the atrocities, he wanted to return to his delusions where he felt safe and respected. The doctor provided an "out" for him by telling him that if the treatment didn't take, he would undergo the surgery (lobotomy). In his addled mind, Teddy probably thought it would be better to have his brain scrambled instead of face what he'd done for the rest of his life.

I say this because at the end, he displays a glimpse of sanity, that he realizes the truth. Then, he feigns a relapse so they will help erase it from his mind with the procedure.

It's been awhile since I read this book, one of my favorites. I think Teddy is getting lobotomized because his mind could not accept the tragedy of his past. This raises yet another question for the reader: Is it better to face reality, or live in a delusion?

In my opinion, after seeing the movie and then reading the book, he actually knows what lies ahead of him. At some point in the end he says, that he can't live with what he did. So it could be that he wants to get lobotomized on purpose since that would kill his mind permanently.

i'm glad i didn't see the movie before i read the book!

The ending just irritated me to be honest. I saw it as plain and simple, he got lobotomized, though I like the idea there might be some volition on his part.

What irritated me was the ending read like those cheesy stories you wrote in middle school but didn't know how to finish, so you end up writing "He woke up and found it all had been a dream."

Sandyboy wrote: "i took it the same way as i took the movie, teddy preferred to be lobotomised than live with the memories. the movie makes that much clearer though"

My thoughts exactly. If you see the movie version, it appears that Teddy has come out of his psychosis but "fakes" that he hasn't so that they will give him the lobotomy and he will be able to forget the horrible events of his life.

Heartbreaking as it is, I believe that Teddy made a conscious decision to undergo the lobotomy. The pain of memory was too much for him to bear so he chose to appear as though he'd regressed. There was no other choice for him to make.

Avril wrote: "i'm glad i didn't see the movie before i read the book!"
I saw the movie before te book and took the ending as Teddy regressing back to his delusional state. I do like others perspective that he chose to get the lobotomy. Anyone saw Sucker Punch?

I haven't seen the movie although I plan to now. The book left me with the sense that he had another relapse and would be lobotomized for his own safety and that of others. The possibility that he "faked" the regression didn't occur to me until reading these comments. It's an interesting idea and I will be rereading (because it was great the first time). I think the futility and helplessness of struggling against something betraying you from within your own mind is played out better if it's read that he regressed rather than made a conscious choice.

Haley wrote: "I don't think that Teddy regressed again. I think that he was acting like he had regressed again because he knew what the consequence would be. He couldn't live with himself anymore after realizing..."

I think this is a very interesting possibility. I was a little confused too, but I thought he had regressed and would have had to undergo the operation.

I read this book years ago and remember I liked it as I recommended it to friends. It's funny I don't remember any details everyone is talking about, maybe I should read it again. Hated the movie. My first LeHayne but not my last.

Loved the book! I read book first so I knew what was going to happen. Teddy was not insane, he chose to have the lobotomy in the end because he did not want to remember losing his children and killing his wife. That's why he said "is it better to live as a murderer or die as a good man". DiCaprio is one of my all time favorite actors, has been since his first movie"This Boys Life", I felt he portrayed the book extremely well. He should have got an award for it.

Excellent book . I definitely needed help to interpret the story. Question ? In the very end 2 pages it says there are the two doctors and 4 orderlys approaching Teddy and Chuck carrying a white cloth with some metal and they unfolded it as they came over to Teddy. Is this a straight jacket? And is this the time they take Teddy to be lobotomized?

Russell wrote: "Someone help me...

Am I correct to conclude Teddy regressed again. He's going have "the surgery." Am I right?

I was gripped for the entire book. Then, I'm saying, "What?" with the last three p..."

No he did not regress, he chose to have the lobotomy over having to remember what had happened to his children and wife. that is why he said "is it better to live as a murderer or live as a good man." Awesome book, but if you've read the book, don't bother with the movie as you know the ending. although DiCaprio did an awesome portrayal as Teddy, great actor!!

Avril wrote: "i'm glad i didn't see the movie before i read the book!"

I completely agree with you. I enjoyed both because I hadn't seen the movie first. I already knew what was coming in the movie, but I still loved it because it followed it as closely as a movie can. One of the few times I have enjoyed both. Mystic River was a disappointing movie, and I absolutely loved the book. Mystic River and Shutter Island were two of the most enjoyable books I have ever read. I vividly remember how I felt when reading both.

He was completely sane, but could not live with the knowledge that his wife murdered his children and he then killed her. He chose to have the lobotomy so that he would never have to remember it again.He didn't want to live with that knowledge. It was an amazing book! I absolutely loved it!!

I hated this book. Hated it. And I won't see the movie since it's so much like the book.

Normally, Dennis LeHane is one of my favorite authors. The Given Day is phenomenal! But Shutter Island... not so much.

I actually fought with my grandmother over the ending. I believe that Teddy knew he was still crazy/couldn't live with himself so he got the lobotomy. She thinks he went back into the delusion. I loved the book, the movie was great, but the whole time in the movie I was pointing out the differences, lol. I enjoyed how the ending gave readers the decision to choose how they think it ended. Usually I hate that, but with this I liked it.

Richard wrote: "i took it the same way as i took the movie, teddy preferred to be lobotomised than live with the memories. the movie makes that much clearer though"

The movie made that clear that he was faking at the very end and was really cured, but was pretending not to be so he wouldn't have to face and live with the horror.

The book, on the other hand...I'm just not sure. I think he may really have gone crazy again. They change things for the movie so I'm not sure if this is what the author intended or not. It wasn't as clear.

Somehow, I like the book ending. It's just so brutal. And yet, very believable.

The movie just makes Teddy a hero.

I think that the ending of the book is the same as the movie, just not as clear. "He sat up and looked toward the bars, but the bars weren't there." This at the start of the chapter makes me think that he has memories of being locked up in C block, where he accepts he is Laeddis. The book has the same ending to the movie in my mind, despite if the author didn't intend it.

Teddy, did not regress. He knew what the price was for not making progress... a lobotomy. He wanted to "die" as a good man (his alter ego Teddy Daniels) and not live as the monster, Andrew Laeddis. He wanted the sweet release of a lobotomy. Remember, he is highly intelligent (making up that alternate reality is proof of that) so he made his doctor believe that he had regressed so that he would be released of his guilt and regret.
I must say, I can relate. If I was in his shoes, I would do the same thing.