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Act 3, Scene 15
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in If We Were Villains, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Fate vs. Free Will
Identity and Disguise
Love and Sexuality
Theatre and Corruption
Summary
Analysis
An hour later, Oliver returns to the Castle and sees James and Filippa in the library. He tells them that Wren collapsed and he carried her to the infirmary. James appears frantic and rushes out to the infirmary. Filippa stays with Oliver and wordlessly comforts him. When Alexander and Meredith come in, he tells them the story, but it’s midnight when James returns. He tells them that he wasn’t allowed to see Wren, but that he could see Colborne and Walton with her in the infirmary. Oliver remembers that Colborne is still investigating them. He makes eye contact with Alexander, who shakes his head. Alexander urges them all to go about their business as usual, reminding them that even if they didn’t kill Richard, they still let him die. After he leaves, Meredith asks Oliver what’s wrong with him, and he tells her he doesn’t know.
Again, James seems more upset about Wren’s distress than anyone else, indicating a special bond between the two. Alexander is again the person in the group to urge everyone to be careful, but this time he’s particularly harsh—for the first time, he puts into words that they’ve done something fearful and bad by letting Richard die. Of course, he was the one to raise the idea in the first place, so his words now suggest that guilt might be starting to get to him. Oliver’s unhappiness at the end of the scene likely stems from multiple sources. Not only is he feeling the pressure of the group’s choice to let Richard die and the police’s investigation, but he's also slowly starting to notice James’s solicitousness toward Wren.
Themes
