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Chapter 13, Part 5
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in A Confederacy of Dunces, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Medievalism, Modernity, and Fate
The Legacy of Slavery
Sexuality, Attraction, and Repulsion
Freedom
Appearance, Identity, and Disguise
Hypocrisy and Self-Interest
Summary
Analysis
In her house, Santa holds up the article about Ignatius and shows it to her mother’s picture, which sits upon the mantelpiece. Santa is extremely proud of Patrolman Mancuso because he has arrested Lana Lee. Santa worries about Irene, though, and thinks that Irene needs to lock Ignatius up if she wants any chance at a second marriage.
Although Santa is proud of American freedoms, she also values law enforcement when it maintains order according to her subjective view. While Lana is a criminal and brought her arrest on herself, Ignatius has committed no crime except being strange, yet Santa wants to incarcerate him. This suggests that Santa only believes in freedom when it conforms with her strict ideas about how people should behave.
Themes
