Blood Of Strangers

Words: 1094
Pages: 5

Robert Frost once said,” No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader.” Frost is trying to show the importance of the author to engage the reader in his or her writings. In “Blood of Strangers” by Frank Huyler, the author shares his personal experiences about being an Emergency Room doctor. Huyler is an engaging writer by employing various strategies such as irony, imagery, and symbolism. This piece of creative writing was also strengthened by Huyler’s ability to give the reader an idea as to what the issue is and then subsequently leave the reader with unanswered questions by the end. He accomplished this by leaving out some of the important details in his stories. Perhaps his strongest …show more content…
In “Through the Dark, Softly,” he does not discuss the patient’s diagnosis. By doing this, Huyler is able to leave the reader in a sense of wonder. He does not say whether or not the criminal from “The Unknown Assailant” went back to his criminal lifestyle but the way he ends the story is chilling. Huyler had to face the ethical question of helping a killer get better, but it was his job to do so. Huyler does not feel threatened by the young man and that “…he meant [him] no harm” (7). The ending is ambiguous as Huyler states,” every day I helped him get better.” It makes the reader wonder if Huyler has any regrets about helping this patient. Did Huyler realize it was his moral obligation as a doctor to help someone in pain, or did he unwittingly help a murderer have a second chance at life and realize it after treating him? In ""Faith," the female patient is adamantly refusing to take medications to treat her blood clots as she felt a higher power would come and save her. After she passes away, the author notes that "she lacked the absolute pallor that dead white people have" (23). He does not outright say what race she was, but we can deduce that she was not white. Huyler’s interactions with people are wonderfully described through the use of dialogue. In “The Unknown …show more content…
Huyler illustrates his firsthand accounts about being an Emergency Room doctor. His use of irony, which is the opposite of an expected outcome, is a strong point in his stories. In the “Unknown Assailant,” he writes about how a convict was rushed to the hospital after a gunshot wound and was now the one begging for his life. In this story, the roles were reversed for the would-be robber. Huyler's use of imagery, irony, dialogue, and his ability leave out important details in "Faith," "The Unknown Assailant," and Through the Dark, Softly" ensure that his writing is engaging, capable, and