Facing limitation and failure: four literary portraits

Abstract

The four stories presented above deal with several ways physicians respond to the experience of limitation, failure, and loss. They may seek solace in the mistakes of others, or cultivate a cynical outlook, or bargain for the time to figure things out, or become angry and project their failure on other forces, or lament their fallibility in the face of assuming responsibility. At the same time, the physicians in the stories grieve the loss of persons entrusted to their care, experiencing sadness and sometimes the urge for recrimination. The broadest common message of these fictional portraits of failure seems to be that while to err is human, it is equally human to struggle against error by trying to account for it, explain it, or prevent it the next time. Literature holds out little hope for eliminating or avoiding failures and mistakes, but in the unblinking accuracy and complexity of emotion with which it displays physicians coming to terms with failure, literature is on the side of understanding and empathy.