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A review by atticus13
The Doctor Stories by William Carlos Williams
5.0
William Carlos Williams’ portrayal of doctors and patients is a breath of fresh honesty amidst the countless books written by doctors today. It’s a shame that so many reviews written on this collection are caught up in the moral complexity of Williams’ crassness, when that very same crassness is critical to the honesty.
So much of what I read today from doctors can be summed up thusly: “becoming a doctor was hard work, and seeing patients suffer was even harder. Life is complex and grand, and I must humble myself before the privilege of serving others.”
All well and good, but in an effort to present yourself as an infallible do-gooder, you’ve stripped your story of the humanity. It’s the punchline without the setup—the gin without the tonic.
Williams’ stories portray doctors as struggling at the center of selfish and selfless, pretentious and considerate, scientific and social. In one story the doctor begins by talking about the suffering of children in a children’s hospital. He bluntly states over and over that it would be better if the young children died sooner rather than later. Then the story proceeds to outline all the efforts the doctor goes through for one suffering girl, and after she passes on the doctor begins to express a little emotion between the cracks of his shell. Looking back, you realize that his cruelty at the start was a pitiful defense mechanism for the pains of his work. He has hardened himself not because he doesn’t care, but because he cares greatly. His caring is expressed via his work ethic—most painfully portrayed by his adamant presence at the autopsy of the young girl, where he learns he could have easily saved her.
Williams’ doctors are sexist, perverse, selfish, drug addicts who work tirelessly to serve their communities. Sometimes they work for noble reasons, other times for shallow reasons. Once a virtuous insight percolates out of the narrative, it is hard earned by the roughened characters filling these painful and funny stories.
So much of what I read today from doctors can be summed up thusly: “becoming a doctor was hard work, and seeing patients suffer was even harder. Life is complex and grand, and I must humble myself before the privilege of serving others.”
All well and good, but in an effort to present yourself as an infallible do-gooder, you’ve stripped your story of the humanity. It’s the punchline without the setup—the gin without the tonic.
Williams’ stories portray doctors as struggling at the center of selfish and selfless, pretentious and considerate, scientific and social. In one story the doctor begins by talking about the suffering of children in a children’s hospital. He bluntly states over and over that it would be better if the young children died sooner rather than later. Then the story proceeds to outline all the efforts the doctor goes through for one suffering girl, and after she passes on the doctor begins to express a little emotion between the cracks of his shell. Looking back, you realize that his cruelty at the start was a pitiful defense mechanism for the pains of his work. He has hardened himself not because he doesn’t care, but because he cares greatly. His caring is expressed via his work ethic—most painfully portrayed by his adamant presence at the autopsy of the young girl, where he learns he could have easily saved her.
Williams’ doctors are sexist, perverse, selfish, drug addicts who work tirelessly to serve their communities. Sometimes they work for noble reasons, other times for shallow reasons. Once a virtuous insight percolates out of the narrative, it is hard earned by the roughened characters filling these painful and funny stories.