The Elephant Man Fredrick Treves Analysis
Analyzing Dr. Frederick Treves
In Bernard Pomerance's play, The Elephant Man, he depicts the story of John Merrick, a man with several crippling deformities, and Dr. Frederick Treves, the physician who discovers and cares for Merrick. Treves attempts to force his ideal of normalcy upon Merrick, attempting to change his life for the better. In the end, Treves realizes that his efforts have only made his patient worse, discovering true humanity and normality in John Merrick. While the character of John Merrick demands the focus of the audience, most would agree that the complexity of the dynamic Frederick Treves outweighs that of the mostly static Merrick. In order to truly understand Frederick Treves, readers and audience members must take a psychoanalytical approach, accessing his characteristics, his relationships with other characters, and his tragic flaw.
In the opening scene of the play, Carr Gomm, the head of the London Hospital, asserts that Freddie is "Age thirty one. Books on Scrofula and Applied Surgical Anatomy - I'm happy to see you rising" (Pomerance 9). From this statement, the audience can immediately infer that Treves is young, intelligent, and ambitious. He has accomplished …show more content…
However, as Merrick inches closer and closer to Frederick's goal, he grows more and more grotesque and grows closer and closer to death. As the show progresses, Treves begins to lose his control of the entire situation, and slowly realizes that his sense of "normality" has destroyed what makes Merrick such a beautiful individual. In his own words, Treves understands the error of his ways, stating "To become more normal is to die." (53) Frederick becomes a tragic hero due to this logical error he has repeatedly made throughout the script. The man who initially saved John Merrick from his life as a sideshow freak has attempted to manipulate the man he once saved into someone he is
In Bernard Pomerance's play, The Elephant Man, he depicts the story of John Merrick, a man with several crippling deformities, and Dr. Frederick Treves, the physician who discovers and cares for Merrick. Treves attempts to force his ideal of normalcy upon Merrick, attempting to change his life for the better. In the end, Treves realizes that his efforts have only made his patient worse, discovering true humanity and normality in John Merrick. While the character of John Merrick demands the focus of the audience, most would agree that the complexity of the dynamic Frederick Treves outweighs that of the mostly static Merrick. In order to truly understand Frederick Treves, readers and audience members must take a psychoanalytical approach, accessing his characteristics, his relationships with other characters, and his tragic flaw.
In the opening scene of the play, Carr Gomm, the head of the London Hospital, asserts that Freddie is "Age thirty one. Books on Scrofula and Applied Surgical Anatomy - I'm happy to see you rising" (Pomerance 9). From this statement, the audience can immediately infer that Treves is young, intelligent, and ambitious. He has accomplished …show more content…
However, as Merrick inches closer and closer to Frederick's goal, he grows more and more grotesque and grows closer and closer to death. As the show progresses, Treves begins to lose his control of the entire situation, and slowly realizes that his sense of "normality" has destroyed what makes Merrick such a beautiful individual. In his own words, Treves understands the error of his ways, stating "To become more normal is to die." (53) Frederick becomes a tragic hero due to this logical error he has repeatedly made throughout the script. The man who initially saved John Merrick from his life as a sideshow freak has attempted to manipulate the man he once saved into someone he is