A Hidden Hero in William Carlos Williams’ The Use of Force

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A Hidden Hero

The doctor in William Carlos Williams’ The Use of Force ultimately saves Mathilda’s life but under what motive? His motive to win the battle against her or the motive to actually try to cure her? The fact that Mathilda’s life is on the line brings out the heroic attributes of the doctor in the story. In the end, even though the doctor has malicious thoughts, the doctor is a hero because he ultimately saves Mathilda’s life and continues with helping Mathilda despite her every attempt to deter the doctor and refuse his help.

From the beginning, the doctor was placed in a hostile situation where the family “[wasn’t] telling [the doctor] more than they had to,”(1) while Mathilda was “eating [him] up with her cold, steady eyes” with “no expression to her face whatever.” which is to be expected from a child towards a stranger. But she escalates extremely quickly when the doctor simply moves his chair up closer; she suddenly “claws instinctively for [the doctor’s] eyes.” This is her first attempt to resist the doctors help but the doctor just remains frank with Mathilda and...

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