# Madness and Identity in The Portent

> Theme guide for The Portent by George MacDonald.

Lady Alice's apparent madness and her dual existence—one in waking life and another in somnambulic states—raise questions about the nature of the self, the reliability of perception, and whether her true identity is revealed in her trances or in her daily demeanor.

## Where it surfaces

- [V: Lady Alice](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/v-lady-alice): Lady Alice's peculiar remarks are misinterpreted as signs of mental deficiency, yet the narrator sees them as indicating a nature allied to genius, questioning the boundary between madness and originality.
- [X: Love and Power](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/x-love-and-power): Alice's dual existence—sleepwalking and awake—raises questions about her true identity, and Duncan's obsession borders on madness.
- [XIV: Jealousy](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xiv-jealousy): Duncan's jealousy borders on madness as he contemplates Alice's dual existence, questioning the nature of her identity and his own sanity.
- [The Clanking Shoe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xvi-the-clanking-shoe): Duncan questions his sanity, fearing that Alice might be a figment of his imagination, and reflects on the nature of madness.
- [XXI: Hilton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xxi-hilton): Lady Alice's madness is described as a state where her soul is 'out of sight', raising questions about her true identity.
- [XXIII: My Old Room](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xxiii-my-old-room): Alice's insanity is central, as she is unaware of the passage of time and her identity is tied to her sleepwalking state. Duncan fears the moment she wakes and the 'dreadful difference' that will be revealed.
- [XXIV: Prison-Breaking](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xxiv-prison-breaking): Alice's fragmented sense of self and Duncan's fear of his own sanity highlight the theme's centrality.
- [New Entrenchments](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xxv-new-entrenchments): Duncan questions whether Alice was ever truly insane, suggesting her condition was a mental stupor, and works to restore her sense of self.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/themes/madness_and_identity
- Themes index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/themes