46 pages • 1-hour read
The Silver Linings Playbook
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Symbols & Motifs
Silver Linings
When Pat runs, he studies the clouds. Clouds hold rain, and rain is often a symbol of sadness, or an ominous foreshadowing device. Clouds hide the sun, which results in a temporarily darker world. The sun lightens the edges of the clouds, reminding Pat that it is still there. His focus on silver linings is a symbol of his optimism and obsession with happy endings.
Cliff does not try to discourage Pat from finding the good in all situations, but he constantly reminds him that actions result in greater changes than intentions. Pat believes he will reconcile with Nikki, yet there are no logical actions he can take to result in that outcome. Deciding that something is a silver lining does not guarantee that this good attitude will bring about the desired effect.
The Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are at the center of most of the family gatherings in the novel. Game day is a hallowed tradition in the Peoples’ household, but the obsession with the Eagles has also been the backdrop for some of the story’s tragic moments. Pat’s father can no longer go to the home games because he beat a fan from an opposing team, just as Pat winds up knocking out the Giants fan. When the Eagles lose, Pat’s father flies into a rage and alternates between sulking and mistreating his family.
The Eagles are largely a symbol of how a shared passion can link disparate people. Pat and Cliff have a professional working relationship as therapist and client, but when they meet at the game, Cliff says that he is just another Eagles fan when he is not in his office. The Indian men bring kabobs to the formerly aggressive people in Scott’s tent, and they all bond over their enthusiasm for the team. The moments when Pat’s father treats his son with affection are during the games, or when he leaves him the sports pages to read each morning.
Kenny G and “Songbird”
Referring to the saxophonist Kenny G, Pat says, “I fear him more than any other human being” (35). The first time Pat has an outburst in the novel, it is when “Songbird” is playing in Cliff’s waiting room. Kenny G’s music is generally viewed as mellow and soothing, making its triggering effect on Pat all the more confusing. When Pat knocks his mother down in the attic, it is because a hallucination of Kenny G is there, playing “Songbird.” The one-note humming technique Pat learns is the only thing that keeps Kenny G at bay.
When the reader learns that “Songbird” was playing both at Pat’s wedding reception and when he discovered his wife’s affair, the song becomes a symbol of Pat’s grief at the end of his marriage. Losing Nikki was the most traumatic event of his life, and the visceral reaction he has to the song is a testament to the agony of the loss. His moment of supreme loss also parallels his first documented break with reality, when he beats Nikki’s lover and blocks out the memory.
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