Reaction Paper The Physician Outline

Ma. Phoebe T.
Subo MED 1
The historical epic The Physician tells the story of Rob Cole, apprentice of an itinerant barber
surgeon, who travels from England to Persia to study under the famous Ibn Sina, who is
renowned for teaching medicine. His is a story of loss, determination, resistance, and ultimately,
enlightenment.
Set in the 11th century, during the Dark Ages, the story starts when a young Rob Cole, with his
unique gift of premonition, senses that her mother is dying. He calls an itinerant barber surgeon
to help him, but the surgeon is stopped by a local priest who warns him that interfering with
God’s will is witchcraft. Rob’s mother dies, leaving him and his two younger siblings as orphans.
As early as this, the role of religion in stifling or restricting medical advancement is quite
apparent. In Guthrie’s A History of Medicine, it is said that the early Christian Church retarded
medical science, especially during the Dark Ages. Followers of Christianity at that time,
especially the priests, asserted that nothing “must detract from the eminence of the one Great
Physician.” Going against this might result to being accused of witchcraft, which is what the
local priest in The Physician tells the barber surgeon.
The human body was also held sacred, which is why dissection was prohibited, not just by
Christians but by Muslims as well. Since the human body could not be studied in depth,
anatomy and physiology during the Dark Ages were dead sciences. These two could only be
studied in the pages of Galen. These restrictions discouraged people from studying medicine,
which is why, at that time, most surgical procedures were in the hands of barber surgeons.
The inadequacy of a barber surgeon’s medical knowledge is obvious in The Physician when
young Rob Cole, working as an apprentice for the barber after the loss of his mother, notices
how insufficient and crude the barber’s medical procedures were, including dental extraction
and amputation. This is further highlighted when Rob brings the barber to a Jewish doctor
because of the barber’s cataract. Here he realizes how rudimentary the procedures of the
barber were compared to the Jewish doctor. Rob also learns of the famous Ibn Sina, who
teaches medicine in Persia.
Upon knowing that Christians were not allowed in Persia and Jews were tolerated, Rob Cole
circumcises himself and takes the name of Jesse Ibn Benjamin. After an arduous journey, which
includes a violent sandstorm, Rob finally reaches Persia and becomes a student of Ibn Sina.
As a student of Ibn Sina, Rob learns various medical procedures such as the use of opium as
an analgesic. Indeed, opium during those times was used for various medical purposes. In A
History of Medicine, for example, it is stated that Theodoric, the son of Taddeo Alderotti, used to
treat wounded patients with an anaesthetic sponge impregnated with mandragora and opium,
which is soaked in hot water before being inhaled by the patient.
When the Black Plague breaks out in the city, Ibn Sina and his students stay to brave the
plague-ridden city and treat the patients. In one touching scene, Ibn Sina tells his students that
he would not take it against them if they left so as not to risk exposing themselves to the plague.
Amazingly, no one leaves. This is a testament to a true physician’s commitment to saving lives,
even if it means risking theirs.
Rob Cole realizes that they know so little about the plague, and that they are helpless battling
against it. When he talks to Ibn Sina, he suggests that they should perform a human dissection
since there were so many corpses at their disposal. Ibn Sina warns him that this thought is
dangerous, as it is prohibited by the Jews, Muslims, and Christians.
When Rob Cole finds out that the rat fleas may be carrying the plague, he, together with Ibn
Sina and his students, devise a way to get rid of the corpses and develop more hygienic
measures in treating the patients. Eventually, the plague is overcome.
However, while it is true that there indeed happened a Black Death in history, Guthrie’s book
asserts that it took place in the 1300s (14th century), unlike in the movie when it occurs during
the 11th century. The Black Death, which was a terrible and widespread epidemic, commenced
in Central Asia and spread along the trade routes of Europe, causing the death of about a
quarter of the population.
Following the end of the plague, Rob Cole treats a dying Zoroastrian patient who has
appendicitis. Rob performs an autopsy in secret, deepening his knowledge of anatomy and
allowing him to discover the inflamed appendix. When the mullahs learn of this, both Rob and
Ibn Sina are sentenced to death, but they are saved by the palace guards so that they can
perform an appendectomy on the Shah.
The appendectomy is successful, and the Shah allows Rob Cole and his people (the Jews) to
escape the city, since there is a threat of invasion. The mullahs, who have sided with the
invaders, destroy the hospital of Ibn Sina. As he is about to escape, Rob Cole notices Ibn Sina’s
absence. He finds him in his library, where he intends to die with his books. Ibn Sina then gives
his book to Rob Cole, asking him to correct it using his newly found knowledge on anatomy.
Rob Cole, together with his wife, returns to England, and since then has become a renowned
physician – Dr. Cole.
In retrospect, while it is easy to think that The Physician somehow portrays a conflict between
religion and medicine, I believe that the movie is, eventually, a story of a quest against
ignorance. As a result of the various religions’ efforts to discourage medical advancements,
ignorance perpetuated. In my opinion, this ignorance indirectly led to, in the case of The
Physician, deaths that could have been avoided, such as what happened with people who had
appendicitis and the plague.
Rob Cole fights against this ignorance and – I would like to believe – wins. He risks his life in the
name of knowledge and he is, ultimately, rewarded when he sees the anatomy of the human
being, which leads to him successfully operating on a patient with appendicitis.
Aside from this, The Physician is also a story of perseverance, whose embodiment is the
protagonist. We see this when Rob Cole journeys across the world, facing sandstorms, so that
he can reach Persia and be a student of Ibn Sina. We also see this when he tirelessly dissects
the human body in the dark. Rob Cole could have stayed with the itinerant barber surgeon, and
he could have followed Ibn Sina’s advice not to dissect a human body, but he did –
perseveringly.
In summary, The Physician is not just a historical movie. It is a story of fighting ignorance
through perseverance so that knowledge, and hopefully enlightenment can be achieved. I li

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Ma. Phoebe T.

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