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A review by jessicawang
Arrowsmith by Sinclair Lewis, E.L. Doctorow
3.0
Ah, Sinclair Lewis, the only person to date to have declined the much wanted Pulitzer Prize. Although he declined, the Pulitzer Board still lists him as the 1926 winner, so of course I read it anyway. I was looking forward to finally read something by Lewis after seeing his name appear so many times in the Jury's decision notes.
This book is a little hard to describe, but I would put it some sort of science/social commentary category. It's the first medical book I've read, and it was able to make bacteria and test tubes all seem rather interesting and not too dry. We follow Martin Arrowsmith from his early childhood through mid-life as an idealistic truth-seeker who wrestles with the ideas that were hotly debated by the medical community in the 1920s. There's the truth-seeking academic side who cares about only the science which is always being rushed or "exploited" by the profit-seeking pharmaceutical companies and research think tanks. (I put "exploited" in quotations because I will leave it up to you to decide which side's arguments have more merits.) One thing I found striking is that despite being written almost a century ago, a lot of these topics are still relevant in the 21st century as we see moral debates over things like the business practices of Valeant Pharmaceuticals. Arrowsmith experiences much of the debate first hand, and his career path meanders through both sides of the debate so that we get a pretty well-rounded picture of the medical industry.
I may be alone in this view, but I found the medical commentary much more interesting than the social aspects of the book. For one, I found most of the women characters written to be one-dimensional caricatures of wives, girlfriends, and nurses. Dear sweet Leora Arrowsmith is loyal, loving, and eager to learn from her husband - I have seen such a trend in these early Pulitzers of men looking to "educate" their naive, unsophisticated wives. She goes from living under her father and brother's rules to living under Martin's rules. She is the most likable character in the entire book, and I wish she had more of a presence beyond caretaker or jealous wife. The book is also a little repetitive at times - the same medical debates are being argued on different platforms again and again, but overall the writing is so smart and witty that I can forgive the repetition.
Ultimately, I wanted Martin to grow and learn from his mistakes, but instead he packs up and moves to a new job in a new state every time he becomes disillusioned. He grows frustrated that he is unable to find a like minded community and has to move every time his arguments make him unpopular with his employers or colleagues, but he is always so sure that the problem is with everyone else and not him. While I think ultimately the characters were a little under-developed and problematic, the ultimate focus of the book is the scientific community, and I was impressed with how well Sinclair Lewis was able to reconstruct this. I'm curious to see how people in the medical profession today would receive this book, so if you're a doctor, pharmacist or nurse, please let me know your thoughts!
***
I would recommend this book to people who are interested in science and social criticism, people who like books set in the roaring 20's, and people who have and don't mind listening to that one idealistic friend talk for way too long over a few beers.
This book is a little hard to describe, but I would put it some sort of science/social commentary category. It's the first medical book I've read, and it was able to make bacteria and test tubes all seem rather interesting and not too dry. We follow Martin Arrowsmith from his early childhood through mid-life as an idealistic truth-seeker who wrestles with the ideas that were hotly debated by the medical community in the 1920s. There's the truth-seeking academic side who cares about only the science which is always being rushed or "exploited" by the profit-seeking pharmaceutical companies and research think tanks. (I put "exploited" in quotations because I will leave it up to you to decide which side's arguments have more merits.) One thing I found striking is that despite being written almost a century ago, a lot of these topics are still relevant in the 21st century as we see moral debates over things like the business practices of Valeant Pharmaceuticals. Arrowsmith experiences much of the debate first hand, and his career path meanders through both sides of the debate so that we get a pretty well-rounded picture of the medical industry.
I may be alone in this view, but I found the medical commentary much more interesting than the social aspects of the book. For one, I found most of the women characters written to be one-dimensional caricatures of wives, girlfriends, and nurses. Dear sweet Leora Arrowsmith is loyal, loving, and eager to learn from her husband - I have seen such a trend in these early Pulitzers of men looking to "educate" their naive, unsophisticated wives. She goes from living under her father and brother's rules to living under Martin's rules. She is the most likable character in the entire book, and I wish she had more of a presence beyond caretaker or jealous wife. The book is also a little repetitive at times - the same medical debates are being argued on different platforms again and again, but overall the writing is so smart and witty that I can forgive the repetition.
Ultimately, I wanted Martin to grow and learn from his mistakes, but instead he packs up and moves to a new job in a new state every time he becomes disillusioned. He grows frustrated that he is unable to find a like minded community and has to move every time his arguments make him unpopular with his employers or colleagues, but he is always so sure that the problem is with everyone else and not him. While I think ultimately the characters were a little under-developed and problematic, the ultimate focus of the book is the scientific community, and I was impressed with how well Sinclair Lewis was able to reconstruct this. I'm curious to see how people in the medical profession today would receive this book, so if you're a doctor, pharmacist or nurse, please let me know your thoughts!
***
I would recommend this book to people who are interested in science and social criticism, people who like books set in the roaring 20's, and people who have and don't mind listening to that one idealistic friend talk for way too long over a few beers.