Chapter 4 Summary and Analysis

The author describes how she appeared to be dealing with John's death but in fact was still in a place of believing he would come back.

Didion points out how few books there are on firsthand experiences of grief. Analytical psychiatric literature gave her the most insight into the nature of grief. She learned of two different sorts of grief, the "uncomplicated", which is uncomplicated and easy to heal, and the "complicated", in which grief, mental/emotional disorientation, and denial seem to linger for an unusually long time. This, the books indicate, is a sign of over-dependence—an analysis that the author immediately turns onto her own marriage. The author then wonders whether faith and grief are the same.

Didion realizes that going into memory is the wrong way to move forward into life.

She writes briefly about the visit...