Patrolman Mancuso’s incarceration in the bathroom mirrors the Roman philosopher Boethius’s imprisonment, during which time he wrote
The Consolation of Philosophy, on which Ignatius bases his worldview and which he lent to Mancuso.
The Consolation of Philosophy also outlines the idea that humans cannot control their own fate but are at the whims of the goddess Fortuna, who is the supreme authority on destiny. Mancuso’s sergeant parodies Fortuna in this sense, as he arbitrarily controls Mancuso’s fate from a distance.