Unnamed Doctor 12

Character Key Number: 
812
Display Name: 
Unnamed Doctor 12
Sort Name: 
Unnamed Doctor 12
Ever Present in Yoknapatawpha?: 
Yes
Biography: 

In The Reivers the country doctor whom Lucius sees in Parsham is "an iron-gray man" at least sixty years old (185). His white shirt and black coat are both unclean, and he "smells like something [that] isn't just alcohol" (185). According to Butch, it's ether. Doctors used ether as an anesthetic, but it was also ab-used as an addictive drug. For all his shortcomings, the narrative treats this doctor - and his 35-year-old memory of a visit to a Memphis brothel - kindly.

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