Enemy of the People

Choose a character and discuss how that character is presented and developed through the play.
Dr. Stockmann- he is a neighborhood doctor, a husband and also a father with 2 young boys. He makes a discovery about the towns spring, realizing that there are bacteria that could be harmful to people. This shows his caring and compassion for the people that swim in this spring. He tries to warn people but his brother, the mayor, doesn’t want people to know about this problem. Even though he means well, every time he tries to help it ends up that people keep turning against him like he is the one in the wrong. Everybody in the town turns against him, but he still doesn’t give in to the mayor and stands by his beliefs. This shows the integrity of the doctor and his perseverance through everything that happens.

Explain one or more of the main ideas explored in the play.

One of the main ideas of the play was how easily a group of people can be persuaded even when the information that they are receiving is completely false. Towards the end of the play, the doctor holds a town meeting to inform the people about the bacteria in the spring. Once the meeting starts, the mayor starts to tell the crowd of people things trying to get them to turn on the doctor before even hearing what he has to say. The mayor’s plan works out perfectly; before the doctor has a chance to speak the crowd tries to get a motion passed that would keep him from talking at all. After some bickering, the doctor gets a chance to speak as long as he doesn’t bring up anything about the springs. So he tries to explain to the crowd how the mayor is trying to make him look like the bad guy. He uses the story of how Jesus was made to look bad even though he was telling the truth. Even after this story, the crowd still doesn’t want to hear anything from the doctor. This proves that groups of people are so easily persuaded, even when the information they are getting is false and makes no sense.