Response to "The Use of Force" by William C. Williams

The Doctor and The Use Of Force

The Doctor in this story by W.C. Williams is a peculiar character. Initially I thought that he was just a doctor checking on a patient because this is his job, I did not have any particular sense of his character and I did not suspect that anything was out of the ordinary. The family was silent and worried as he came to their house and were waiting for him in the kitchen where the father was holding the girl, Mathilda. 

The Doctor talks about the girl as a child for "advertising leaflets" and "unusually attractive thing". He also compares her to a "heifer". It's really disturbing that an old man describes a child this way, but I let this go because I thought "ok, that could just be an external description without anything more there". But then things become weird.

As the Doctor proceeds to the examination and mainly due to the child's refusal to receive the exam and the dreadful sense of fear that the implication of diphtheria's infections created a tense situation between the characters. The Doctor starts saying things like "I had already fallen in love with the savage brat", "I wanted to kill him [the father]", "It was a pleasure to attack her". These ambiguous statements make the relationship of the Doctor and the patient really complicated. 

The Doctor is clearly charged with power through his position as the authority figure in the room. The parents are scared of the decease and are ready to do everything for their child. The Doctor is their only solution and in their eyes he is better. At this point we should note that this is a first person account of the events. Hence the Doctor is aware of the impact that his presence has in the room. He uses force to do good. But then he admits that he's enjoying using force. It really complicates things and makes this Short Story extremely interesting. 

When finally the Doctor discovers the girl's "secret" and confirms that she has diphtheria things complicate more through the way that the narrations ends. I don't know what do think about his intentions to use force. Yes, there was a possibility that the girl was sick so the stress to examine her was major, but he took pleasure out of it. When he sees that the girl has mucus in her throat and that she was binding it from her parents and him there's a connotation that the girl knew the implications of her disease so this makes her more than a stubborn and immature child.

It's is really effectively done, especially considering how short the story is. The importance of the disease and the emotions in the room are communicated through the writing.