Enemy of the People
The book I read was written by Ibsen and called Enemy of the People. There were nine characters in this book but only five main characters. Dr. Stockmann, Hovstad, Aslaksen, Peter, and Billing. The protagonist was Doctor Stockmann. He has just discovered that a bathing complex that is crucial to the town’s economy is seriously contaminated. He alerts several members of the community and receives generous support and thanks for making this discovery in time to save the town. The next day his brother, the town mayor and the antagonist, tells him he has to retract his statement to the town because to repair the bath it would cost to much money for the town; the mayor is not convinced by the doctors findings. They have a huge argument, but the Doctor hopes that the newspaper will support him. But the mayor convinces the newspaper to oppose him.
Soon after the doctor holds a town meeting to tell everyone about the baths. The mayor and Aslaksen, the newspaper printer, try to keep him from speaking. The doctor begins a long lecture in which he condemns the foundations of the town and the tyranny of the majority. The people find his speech offensive and revolt against the doctor. The next morning the doctor’s house is vandalized and all the people who supported him earlier now oppose him. Instead of leaving the town the doctor stays in the town to defy authority. His family is supportive and he says, “that the strongest man is the man who stands alone.”
Psychology plays a main part in the conclusion of the story. Its mob psychology, in the story the newspaper editors did support him and so did most of the town up until the mayor got to them and told them that he was bad. The people knew that the baths were no good and contaminated but they were to afraid to voice there opinion in fear that they might be different and consider bad to the town authorities. So mob psychology deals with people who don’t want to stand out in a crowd no matter what is going to happen to them or the town.
In Enemy of the People, we see that science and technology are at the mercy of those who hold power, in this case, political power. Dr. Stockmann has discovered, through the use of science, that there is a problem with the economic center of the town-the baths. It is not Dr. Stockmann's use of science that questions the compatibility of science and human values, but his bother, Peter Stockmann's use of technology. Peter is able to control the newspaper, and therefore popular opinion, away from Dr. Stockmann (Act 3). The newspaper is a form of technology that allows news of many events to reach the common person. However, this holds a lot of responsibility with it. Whoever is in charge of what goes in the paper has the ability to shape public opi...
Dr. Thomas Stockmann is a public-minded doctor in a small town famous for its public baths. He discovers that the water supply for the baths is contaminated and has probably been the cause of some illness among the tourists who are the town's economic lifeblood. In his effort to clean up the water supply, Dr. Stockmann runs into political cowards, sold-out journalists, shortsighted armchair economists, and a benighted
325). Wink faced an unknown medical issue in the film, and his problems were usually handled with alcohol or remedies from Mrs. Bathsheba; therefore, leading the audience to wonder if he had adequate medical attention would he be in his condition. As the movie continues and the government enforces a mandatory evacuation of The Bathtub, Wink faces a huge dilemma as Hushpuppy witnesses her dad lash out at the doctors while they are quarantined at this government facility. Hushpuppy soon witnesses her father slip away into a state he never wanted to be in; therefore, leading the young independent girl into a whirlpool of thoughts and emotions and causing the whole group of citizens from The Bathtub to take a chance to get back home. Wink did not want to be plugged in the wall in his final days, so the others from The Bathtub took him home to his final resting place; however, the adverse reaction to the health care provided to Wink, suggests to the audience that he was not receptive to the help or it was too late to recover. According to James Kirby’s study community characteristics influence access to health care and with the citizens of The Bathtub their access to health care was limited due to their lifestyle choices. When the
The SAT, which is a national standardized test, designed to test skills, accuracy and knowledge of students has always been surrounded by controversies. It was originally created to eliminate the difference between students from different social backgrounds and provide equal level field. The test was developed by a psychologist from Princeton named Dr Carl Brigham in 1926, who also had controversial views on race, that suggested Anglo-Saxons were more intelligent than Other Races. Later in which he publicly apologized for. The SAT was designed to have impact on everyone equally, but studies have suggested the opposite. Initially the test aimed to give students from small towns in the northeast of the
Patients are forced to do what the doctor says because they are in fear of their illness and the help of someone specialized in the field will soothe them. The doctor in the story knows that there is an increasing number of cases of diphtheria, a fatal disease affecting young children and he also knows that if he does not get a diagnosis now then the girl will die in a, “bed of neglect”. It is because of this fear that the parents cooperate with the doctor and allow him to use brutal force to open the girl’s mouth. The doctor possess power over the patient already has. While the doctor is in a calm state the patient is usually gripped with fear. This fear puts the patient in a bad position because the doctor doesn’t need to worry since he doesn’t have the illness. If the doctor is ignored then the patient runs the risk of dying from a disease they could have prevented and that in itself is very powerful. The patient will blindly trust the doctor because of the slur of emotions and panic. However what will happen if all the power of the doctor was removed? Will the world be a better place? Personally I believe that there needs to be some form of authority that a doctor must possess in order for
So, that is why they tried to prove Dr. Stockman an unreliable source, trying to force his “false findings” on the public, and making them suffer. The way Mayor Stockman implemented this was using the newspaper and the public itself. He first went to Hovstad and explained what would happen if this news made the papers, and Stockman offered him a different solution. He suggested they bash his brother, make him look like a terrible man, and hopefully that leads to the public backing us up. Mayor Stockman says he is doing all this for the greater good, but in reality it is affecting everyone poorly. Yes, you are bringing in income for the civilization and it is keeping your community afloat, but it is all coming at a risk. The baths were scientifically proven to be a major health risk causing harm to those who use them. So, by law you are doing something completely wrong. Another thing Dr. Stockman mentions is this idea of majority or ruling by majority. At first, he believed he owned the majority of the people that mattered the most, but quickly lost control of them. These people contributed to his falling and un-credible source of
A defining attribute of America’s system of government is the participation of the citizens in decisions. Unlike many countries in the world today, one dictator does not decide the path for the whole nation. People from ordinary backgrounds have the opportunity to have an affect on laws passed in our country. While voting is the more common form of exhibiting this privilege of participation, citizens also have the ability to run for offices in our government. The structure of our government is unique in that there are numerous offices to be held within our government which are relatively equal in power. Officials within the federal government can be categorized as being part of the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of government. Understanding the structure and function of these branches is important when considering the uniqueness of our nation, as well as knowing the qualifications one must posses to obtain these offices.
The Mayor in the play had to ignore the truth because of money. Money played a big role in which motivated the Mayor to ignore the situation of the Baths and also ending up in a conflict with Doctor Stockmann. Since the town gained it major income from the Baths, the Mayor didn’t want to expose the public of the truth. When he says, “Oh, the public has no need for new ideas. The public gets on best with the good old recognized ideas it already has” (Ibsen, 94), he’s being very greedy and saying that it’s better to hide the truth because the people will get mad and try to fix the problem. However, fixing the problem costs a lot of money and the Mayor’s extremely concerned with money and reputation. He didn’t want to put time and money in fixing the pipe in the Baths so he just chose to hide the truth and threaten the public with the increase of tax. Therefore, since the Mayor’s position is a leading, responsible one, he buries the truth in order to protect the success of the Baths.
This year alone cigarettes will kill over 420,000 Americans, and many more will suffer from cancers, and circulatory and respiratory system diseases. These horrible illnesses were known to come from cigarettes for years. Recently the Food and Drug Administration declared nicotine, the main chemical in cigarettes, addictive. This explains why smokers continue to use cigarettes even though smokers are aware of the constantly warned about health dangers in cigarettes. Some researchers have also found out that smoking by pregnant women causes the deaths of over 5,000 babies and 115,000 miscarriages. The only way to get rid of the suffering and loss of life by cigarettes is to ban them. . For years cigarettes have been known to cause cancer, emphysema, and other horrible illnesses. The deaths of over 420,000 of Americans this year will be do to cigarettes. With all the other causes of deaths, alcohol, illegal drugs, AIDS, suicide, transportation accidents, fires, and guns, cigarettes still count for more deaths than those do combined. We can’t stand and watch people die because they smoke cigarettes. Thousands of smokers try to rid themselves of cigarettes but can't because of additive nicotine. Nicotine was recently declared addictive by the Food and Drug Administration, which explains why many smokers continue to smoke despite the health warnings on cigarette smoking. Nicotine makes it almost impossible for cigarette smokers to quit smoking because of its addictive nature, and with the cigarette manufacturers putting just enough nicotine in the so they cant be outlawed. The benefits of outlawing cigarettes greatly outnumber the disadvantages, for example, many scientists believe a link between smoking and a shortened life span exists between the two, a ban on cigarettes could increase life spans. Many studies suggest that billions of dollars now spent on smoking related. Smoking related illnesses could be reduced by outlawing cigarettes, families could save money by not purchasing cigarettes, and accidental fires costing millions of dollars caused by cigarettes would stop. Although a complete ban on cigarettes currently remains almost impossible, several organizations recently helped create a bill that could control cigarettes much in the same way the government now controls drugs. One such organization, the Food and Drug Administration, headed by David Kesslar drafted a major part, which would require manufacturers to disclose the 700 chemical additives in cigarettes, reduce the level of harmful chemicals, require cigarette companies to warn of the addictive nicotine, restrict tobacco advertising and promotion, and control the level of nicotine cigarettes contain.
conducts monstrous acts, the reader still views him as a victim of circumstance in a society that
An Enemy of the People, by Henrik Ibsen, is the story of a man named Dr. Thomas Stockman, who becomes a deviant to society. After discovering that the waters in the town’s baths are polluted, Dr. Stockman tries to spread the news and have the baths shut down. He assumes that the townspeople will be happy to hear his news, since the water is what has been making everyone sick. However, many people in the town aren’t very happy to hear such news, and before Dr, Stockman realizes it, the entire town has turned against him. Stockman criticizes the townspeople for this, and even refers to them as “street curs.” What made the town turn against him? Did they honestly all disagree with the doctor’s opinion? Did they fall to group pressure? Or, was it his brother the mayor’s influence?
Dr. Thomas Stockmann is the Medical Officer of the Baths in the play ''enemy of the people'' by Henrik Iben; and the brother of the Burgomaster (mayor) of the town. Jovial by nature, the doctor enjoys the company of "bright, cheerful, freedom loving young fellows" who share his idealism and ability to think freely.
Stockmann lashing out at the whole town for its ignorance and lies that this town
In the play An Enemy of the People we see how each characters shows their feelings differently. Each character is motivated by different things which causes them to act in that way. All the characters end up in conflicts because of their different views about the real truth of the Baths. For example, the Mayor acts the way he does because he’s motivated by money. And all he cares about is money and not about the wellbeing of others. Doctor Stockmann on the other hand is trying to expose the truth because of his concern of the public’s health he doesn’t take anything else into consideration when wanting to reveal the truth behind the baths. His wife supports Doctor Stockmann because she’s motivated by family and loyalty towards her husband.
Sometimes, there are some books that have such intriguing characters in them, that captivate the reader, and make him wonder. Such character is Dr. Stockmann from ‘An enemy of the people’, by Henrik Ibsen. However, to understand the complexity and richness of this character, first one must know the plot of the story. Dr. Stockmann is a doctor that lives in a Norwegian city, whose main attraction are the ‘Baths’. They bring a lot of money to the city, but he is not certain of their healthy quality. So he makes a research and finds out that the ‘Baths’, as he had suspected, are unhealthy for the people. Then, he decides that the right thing to do is inform his townspeople of the polluted water, and protect them. However as it turns out, not everyone is in favor of this discovery, especially his brother, the mayor, who successfully turns everyone against him. Throughout this ‘battle ‘between him and the town, and the way he handles the situation, some traits of Dr. Stockman’s personality, come out. As he is presented in the book, Dr. Stockmann is naïve, selfish and moral.