In this scene Clark explores Ken’s nature. As any good director would do Clark chooses a very powerful issues to exhibit this. The director should show the incapability of Ken to prevent anyone doing something to him (his body)
This scene starts off with Dr. Scott asking Sister whether she’d got the Valium for Ken. Instead off Sister giving Ken the medication Dr. Scott tells her that she’d give him it. As she enters the room she say’s “I’ve brought something to help you.” Whilst saying this you wouldn’t have Dr. Scott really cheerful and happy. You would have her opening the door and standing there. As if waiting for permission to enter the room. Ken replies to this with a comical remark. He says to her “My God they’ve got some highly qualified nurses in this hospital.” At this point Dr. Scott loosens up and also replies back with a whimsical comment. After this the professional relationship at this stage of the play breaks down a little more and instead of acting professionally Dr. Scott talks to Ken in a social manner. They talk about the ranking of a nurse in a comical fashion but subsequent to this it all comes apart. After they talk about how each nurse learns how to perform an enema at Training School, the director would probably build up a silent break. Ken then say’s “….Just now, for two glorious minutes, I felt like a human being again.” She replies “Good.” This is a crucial part to this scene,
Ken: And now your going to spoil it.
Dr. Scott: How?
Ken: By tranquillising yourself
Dr. Scott: Me?
Ken: Oh, I shall get the tablet, but its it’s you that needs the tranquillising; I don’t.
Dr. Scott: Dr. Emerson and I thought. . .
Ken: You both watched me disturbed, worried even
perhaps, and you cant do anything for me – nothing
that really matters, I’m paralysed and you’re
impotent. This disturbs you because you’re a
sympathetic person and as someone dedicated to an
active sympathy doing something – anything even-
you find it hard to accept you’re impotent. The only
thing you can do is stop me thinking about it –
that is – stop me disturbing you. So I get the tablet
and you get the tranquillity.
What Ken says to Dr. Scott here is very harsh. He says that she is impotent and that she doesn’t like seeing Ken like this because she can’t do anything to help him. So she gives him the Valium tablet to tranquillise him so he won’t be able to do the only thing he really can which is speaking so he won’t make sound to attract her attention. As a result of this he takes the tablet and she gets the tranquillity.
As a quick summary of the speech, he is trying to say that she feels impotent if he takes the tablet he is tranquillised. If he doesn’t do anything to disturb her she will feel relieved and potent. The way that Ken gets treated by Dr. Scott this was a very spiteful thing that he could have said. This speech from Ken also shows that Ken maybe paralysed but he still capable to make up his mind and it shows how able he is and intellectually stable, or so he thinks he is. I believe that at this point the director would want Ken to speak in a loud fashion possibly shouting at Dr. Scott. The head being the only part of the body which can move, The director would want to take full advantage of this, he would have Ken trying to raise his head whilst shouting at Dr. Scott. The director would have Ken say this because prior to this Ken says to Dr. Scott “Just now, for one or two glorious minutes, I felt like a human being again.” and he knows that once he takes the Valium he will lose this sense. He tries to get a reaction out of Dr. Scott by insulting her with these comments so that he could have his own humanity acknowledged. However, Dr. Scott approaches this with a professional response “That’s a tough diagnosis.” Contrasting to how Dr. Scott and Ken talked before this was a professional comment. Ken replies with a question “Is it so far from the truth?” At this point the director would have Ken pretty calm but still a little frustrated because he knows that even after all that she, still isn’t even slightly angry. He then takes another shot at making her enraged but she replies to his question partly but she doesn’t get at all angry. They speak about …. Ken banging his against the wall. Ken makes a speech about his consciousness being the only thing that he has the claim the right to use. He tells her that she wants tranquillity she can take the tablet. She replies to all his speeches with a professional cheek. The bond between Dr. Scott and Ken breaks at this point of the play but not permanently. Ken then talks about the prescription being treated as if it had been handed down from the Sinai but the writing on it isn’t Hebrew. Dr. Scott begins to hesitate and say to him “. . . . .Well, you aren’t due for it until twelve o’clock. We’ll see . . . .” Ken makes a comical remark saying if you don’t whether to take a tranquilliser sleep on it. At this point the director would cool down the atmosphere, which has arisen between them. The director now makes Ken look for sympathy from Dr. Scott because he asks her to go and tell Dr. Emerson that I don’t want the Valium and I don’t need it. He wants her to help him put an end to the Valium. Dr. Scott leaves the rooms and tells Sister that she hasn’t given the Valium to ken yet and pursuing this she alters his notes.
This section of the play concerns Nurse Sadler and John.
“NURSE SADLER is taking kidney dishes and instruments out of the steriliser. John creeps up from behind her and seizes her round the waist. Nurse Sadler jumps, utters a muffled scream and drops a dish”.
John jokes around with Nurse Sadler and gives his perspective of the hospital. He says that the hospital is an ante-room of the morgue (a place where you go before you go to the morgue). He doesn’t say this in a serious manner but in a comical manner. Nurse Sadler debates this, she says that there is Mr. Trevellyan who is being released tomorrow. John again replies with a comical comment “After his third heart attack! I hope they give him a return ticket on the ambulance.” Nurse Sadler starts to act seriously, she says to him “Would you let them die? People like Mr. Harrison?” At this point John informs Nurse Sadler of a fact “In Africa children die of measles. It would cost only a few of pounds to keep them alive. There’s something crazy somewhere” They argue for a while and then I guess John gets a little bored of the arguing and starts to joke around again.
The director would want John in this section because as John is a comical character and he want to emphasise the fact that in a place like a hospital where everyone takes their jobs so seriously there is a character like John who looks at everything from a different slant.
Clark has put John in the play because in the whole of the hospital Clark does not introduce a character like John. John is comical character who looks at everything from another angle, for example on page 6 he treats Ken like a human being and not like an invalid. He shows this by not feeling sorry for Ken but acting regularly with him. On page 6 he plays Ken like xylophone with a razor. Another reason why Clark has put in this scene is because with everything going on with Ken (not being able to do anything), life goes on around him.
Now Clark goes back to Dr. Scott, she goes to Dr. Emerson’s office, knocks and opens the door. Dr. Emerson is on the phone to an administrator talking about purchasing a new heart monitor. This speech is important seeing as it is all based around money and how important it is. Dr. Emerson is on the phone talking about costs and how he make staff deductions once bought and how it would be more efficient. He then puts the phone down, turns to Dr. Scott and says “. . . . . . . Bloody administrators. In this job a degree in accountancy would be more valuable to me than my M.D. . . . . . Still, what can do for you?” At this point the director would have Dr. Emerson looking at his desk while making the speech above and then when it came to the part about the accountancy degree being more valuable than his M.D. At this point he hesitates and realises what he was about to say. He instantaneously changes the subject, he asks Dr. Scott what he can do for her. Dr. Scott starts to talk about how Ken refuses to take the Valium. Dr. Scott explains the situation to Dr. Emerson. Dr. Emerson reacts in an angry but calm fashion,
Dr. Emerson: Now let’s get this clear. This morning when you examined him, you came to a
careful and responsible decision that your patient needed a certain drug.
Dr. Scot: Yes.
Dr. Emerson: I saw the patient and I agreed with your prescription.
Dr. Scot: Yes.
Dr. Emerson: But in spit of two qualified opinions, you accept the decision of someone
completely unqualified to take it.
The director would show Dr. Emerson talking Dr. Scott bit by bit through this, in a way you’d help an infant. I feel the director would show Dr. Emerson angry but in a calm state. The reason in which he is angry is that Dr. Scott ignored him and listened to Ken. When Dr. Scott sides with Ken Dr. Emerson responds with “Ours was objective, his was a subjective decision.” Meaning that our decision was based on facts his on feelings. Dr. Emerson starts to go on about when Ken first came in did he complain about being given i.e. dextrose-saline when he was shocked or the aminophylline when he was gasping for breath. He begins to act sarcastic towards Dr. Scott and Ken’s decisions. He says that even though Ken is now conscious we still have a responsibility to try to retain whatever power he retains. Dr. Scott asks Dr. Emerson “How does a depressant drug improve his consciousness?” He says that it will help him come to an acceptance with his condition. He then says, “You say he refuses to take the tablet?”
The director, I believe would show Dr. Emerson talking calmly to Dr. Scott in a stern manner. The director would have Dr. Emerson sitting on his desk looking at Dr. Scott’s face. At this stage there would be some form of eye contact.
He picks up the phone and rings Sister’s office and says “Emerson here. Could you prepare a syringe with five milligrams of Valium for Mr. Harrison?
Dr. Emerson speaks as the officer in charge in the army or the police force would speak, ‘Emerson here…’ Clark tries to indicate that Dr. Emerson is the one in charge and whatever he says goes no question about it and any good director would pick up on this point. Subsequent to this Dr. Emerson goes to Sister’s office, Dr. Scott asks if she should come with him he replies no. He walks into the Sister’s office and asks if she has the Valium ready. She hands him the kidney dish and starts to follow him. Dr. Emerson says to her “It’s alright Sister. You’ve plenty of work I expect.” He walks into Ken’s room.
Clark shows that Dr. Emerson wants to be alone with Ken and we find out why Dr. Emerson wanted to be alone with Ken, the director would pick up on this point and choose a proficient way to display this. Clark would have Dr. Emerson annoyed with Dr. Scott but the way that Clark intends to show that Dr. Emerson has a little respect for Sister and both Sister and Dr. Emerson have a bond. The director would pick up on this point and to show it he would present it in a way that you could compare his behaviour towards Sister and Dr. Scott.
At this point Dr. Emerson enters the room, Ken makes a comical remark “Hello, hello, they’ve bought up the heavy brigade.” Instead of replying to this or responding to this in any sort of way Dr. Emerson walks over to Ken’s bed and reaches for his arm. This shows how direct Dr. Emerson is and the director would want to produce this point showing that as Dr. Emerson comes in he looks at Ken’s arm and not directly at Ken. Ken says to Dr. Emerson “Dr. Emerson I’m afraid I must insist that you do not stick that needle in me.” At this point Ken gives an indirect order to Dr. Emerson not to stick the needle in him. Proceeding this there is a succession of statements on how Ken did not want the injection as Dr. Emerson said that it was a series of injections required keeping him alive and Ken’s wish was to die. He says that he is the best judge of what is good for him but Dr. Emerson refused saying how he was depressed and how his body hasn’t come to acceptance about his condition so he didn’t think what was right and necessary for his body. Ken instructs Dr. Emerson not to stick the needle in him but Dr. Emerson ignores him and injects him with the Valium anyway. This emphasises the point that I made earlier that whatever Dr. Emerson goes and he verifies this by injecting Ken without his consent. After Ken had been injected with the Valium he specifically asks Dr. Emerson why he injected him with the Valium and the only real answer he got for that question was, it was necessary. At this point the director would try to show that Dr. Emerson doesn’t really need to explain his actions. The director would present this point by showing that Dr. Emerson, still doesn’t make any eye contact with Ken but rather than that he concentrates on the syringe and clearing up the minute mess created by this activity.
This is supposedly the climax of the scene. Prior to this, Ken states that the only thing that he still has the right to claim to use was his consciousness. At this point he also loses this right to it because more than one occasion Ken tells Dr. Emerson not to inject him with needle and he still does. And to top it all off he doesn’t explain to him in even slightly in depth.
Clark builds up to the climax of the scene from page 13. As Dr. Emerson enters the room he does not make eye contact or speak with Ken he goes straight for his arm. Any good director would have Dr. Emerson enter the room coolly and injects him with the needle. Even when he speaks to Ken, The director would have Dr. Emerson concentrating on Ken’s arm or the syringe. The scene finishes with Ken going to sleep (…ken is frustrated and then his eyes close).
The second section I chose what the court case. As the Valium section was the climax of its act the court case is the climax of act two and the whole play. The preparation for the court case actually starts from page 37 but the actual court case starts on pages 66/67. I will mainly concentrate on the actual court case but I will also refer back to other pages. I will start on pages 37 and describe the case briefly. The act starts with Sister introducing Mr. Hill (the lawyer). The incentive of Mr. Hill’s visit was to try to get some compensation for Ken from the accident. He comes in and starts briefing Ken on their position and this point Ken informs Mr. Hill the genuine reason of his visit. The reason which, Ken requests the call upon of Mr. Hill was because he wants Mr. Hill to get him discharged from the hospital. He convinces Mr. Hill to go to Dr. Emerson and persuade him to let him go. Mr. Hill goes to Dr. Emerson but after numerous topics about Ken’s condition discussed Ken’s wish was not granted but a physiatrist