Doctor, Doctor

Will Landschulz
Am. Lit. Per. 2
Mrs. LaMagdeleine

The chapter opens in Dr. Gordon's waiting room: beige, bland, and boring, with nothing but a receptionist's desk, some certificates, a coffee and magazine table, and a potted plant.  Esther, in this seeming oasis of blandness, cuts a far more interesting image than the snoozer of a wall color.  She hasn't washed her clothes or her hair for three weeks, and hasn't been sleeping for one.  Dr. Gordon, the man behind the bland walls, seems to be as useful to Esther as the potted plant in the corner.  The condescension in his voice grows so thick that it can be cut through if one has the proper proverbial knife.  He keeps a picture of his family on his desk, but not just for him to look at: Esther notices that she can see his wife on it from the angle, as if he's daring all his patients to ask him out and be rejected.  It only serves to make Esther angrier, as she's said with great conviction that she's not going to get married, and this image of the wife, with the angelic kids and the adorable, litter-trained puppy around him, seems only to mock her.  Dr. Gordon doesn't seem to care about Esther's problem, hardly thinking about Esther's symptoms and making a vague statement about girls he used to know at Esther's college that could easily be from any college, and which he later repeats to her verbatim when she tells him (again) which college she goes to.  After that, he seems to brush Esther off with a cheerful "see you next week," knowing full well that he gets 25 dollars per hour.  Seems like a reasonable thing to try and milk, but he's not putting any effort into Esther's case, which would make him seem more forgivable.  In his apathy and condescension, he's not knowingly hurting Esther, even during the shock treatment, but he definitely isn't going to be any help whatsoever.