The Quiet Tenant

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes depictions of captivity, physical and psychological abuse, and a sexual encounter that proceeds without explicit consent.

The opening of The Quiet Tenant is told from the perspective of “Rachel,” a woman whom a serial predator has held captive in a shed for the last five years. Nearly every night, he visits and repeats the same routine. “Rachel” is fed leftovers, given a bucket to relieve herself, and lent minimal toiletries to see to her hygiene. Then, her captor sexually assaults her and leaves. She knows that her survival depends upon anticipating her captor’s reactions and behaving accordingly, for he has always been quick to react with violence in response to any perceived transgression on her part. In addition to forcing her to go by “Rachel” instead of her actual name, he habitually reminds her of the false narrative that he insists she repeat, claiming, “I found you […] You were lost. I gave you a roof. I keep you alive. […] Know what you’d be, without me? Nothing. You’d be dead” (11). On this particular night, he announces that he must move to a different residence and rebuffs her when she carefully begins to ask questions.