Michaels wrote that Bergman and Elisabet share a dilemma: they cannot respond authentically to "large catastrophes", such as the Holocaust or the Vietnam War. Political columnist Carsten Jensen identified the Vietnam footage Elisabet sees as the 1963 self-immolation of Thích Quảng Đức. According to Jensen, photographs of Quảng Đức's death were widely circulated and were used in "Persona". Academic Benton Meadows wrote that Elisabet sees herself in Quảng Đức's death, fearing that it would be a consequence of her silent rebellion. Törnqvist wrote that Elisabet is struck by the truth that the monk is a true rebel, while her rebellion is a cowardly retreat behind a "persona" of muteness.