William Carlos Williams' Doctor Stories

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William Carlos Williams’ passion and dedication of medicine can be seen through his literary contributions of short stories and poems. The Doctor Stories use interior monologue in a stream-of-consciousness as a tool to reflect each narrator’s experience and gives insight into the character and his appraisal of each of the situations encountered. It is through this stream-of-consciousness that we come to realize the observational nature of this doctor’s actions and thoughts.
In the story A Night in June, Williams details a feeling of restlessness when a child needs to be delivered without the aid of a nurse or an anesthetist while having limited tools to operate with. His thoughts portray a hope that some patients would be better off to deliver in a hospital. He comments on how it’s a better place with better tools, which it shows the idea that doctors are starting to think about the future of medicine and where it might be headed, from house calls to hospitals and doctors’ offices. He was particularly observant about the time that June 10th at 3:20 am, how he flashed a light over the calendar on his way out and noticed the date in passing.
The Girl With the Pimply Face shows the skills of a masterful observer from the very beginning, with the doctor noticing discrimination through the remark, “But they’re foreigners and you know how they are,” as the druggist explains the call to him. (pg. 42) The narrator shows a lack of judgmental ideals, unlike the druggist who seemed rather dismissive which possibly caused the narrator to reserve all judgments. He does not look upon the fifteen year old girl with the normal suspicion shown but instead shows a high level of respect for her. The narrator goes in to great detail about the phy...

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...ot down because all it is considered is just psychiatry in the eyes of the staff. (pg. 107) This narrator shows that there are reasons behind the actions of the boy, and that a treatment is actually possible, just by observing his past and the events that have led to his stealing. The narrator doesn’t see the boy’s past as irrelevant like the staff does; he sees it as the life of the boy. And because of this singular observation, he gains the respect of his father, who congratulates him and tells him to continue doing what he is doing.
Williams is a superb writer, and uses his skill to portray different situations in which doctors analyze the human conditions through observation. Each story showcases a different viewpoint. Each story is made from the observation of an individual doctor and not of many, so the views expressed are solely dependent on the writer.

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