Monday, November 15, 2021

The Use of Force

The Use of Force is a short story by William Carlos Williams. You can read it online here. You can listen to it read to you at the bottom of this post. It begins,
They were new patients to me, all I had was the name, Olson. Please come down as soon as you can, my daughter is very sick.

When I arrived I was met by the mother, a big startled looking woman, very clean and apologetic who merely said, Is this the doctor? and let me in. In the back, she added. You must excuse us, doctor, we have her in the kitchen where it is warm. It is very damp here sometimes.

The child was fully dressed and sitting on her father's lap near the kitchen table. He tried to get up, but I motioned for him not to bother, took off my overcoat and started to look things over. I could see that they were all very nervous, eyeing me up and down distrustfully. As often, in such cases, they weren't telling me more than they had to, it was up to me to tell them; that's why they were spending three dollars on me.

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12 comments:

  1. No time to read other than blogs right now. But maybe when I get home. Just wanted to stop by and say hi though!

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    1. This story struck me. Differences between cultures makes a real difference.

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  2. I don't know this one, so I've got is bookmarker to keep me company when I paint. Have a great week!

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  3. Poor kid. The parents filled her with such fear and dread of the doctor. The poor doctor, too.

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  4. I listened to it. Ended so abruptly.

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    1. Yes, this is one battle the kid can't win, though.

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  5. I found the ending a bit disturbing. Thanks for sharing this, though.

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    1. It's hard to be a strong-willed child in a situation you have no control over.

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  6. I'm timed out to the max but I love seeing what you share!

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