Rhetorical analysis of ‘the good doctor’ series

The Good Doctor’ is a medical drama series that depicts Shaun Murphy, a surgical resident, who has savant syndrome and autism. The plot revolves around a young surgeon from a small town who relocates and joins a renowned surgical department but encounters difficulties due to the controversy about his diagnosis (Farrell n.d). His journey starts when he is driving to Bonaventure Hospital when a signpost falls on a young child. Shaun is able to stabilize the boy thanks to his remarkable capacity to see the internal organs. The author’s use of ethos, logos, and pathos would be expanded upon in this article. The entire episode is framed in a setting of a board meeting where contentious politicians of the governing body of the hospital argue why they should employ an autistic surgeon. The author elaborates the credibility of the surgeon by showing how he was first hired and delayed saving the life of the boy who he eventually saves. This action is severely fractured by the board meeting where Aaron Glassman tries to convince the board meeting members whether they will just let a Wyoming young boy walk away with his possessions. The author also demonstrates why Shaun was a credible doctor, mainly where he was directing other surgeons what to do until the came across the broken glass that was traveling through the boy’s veins (Yanwen 162).

Pathos

The pacing alert of this film is when the author shows that the decision made by the board is that an autistic person cannot be a surgeon mainly from a young boy who life is about to end if not treated faster. The narrative is also interrupted by flashback disorders that carry moments of taut and red-hot wires that made Shaun become a surgeon (Yanwen 169). The author also shows how it is wrong to assume that autistic people could not be useful in the field of surgeons. In fact, more is elaborated when he started revealing his ability by knowing how the human body functions that amaze people.

Eventually one of the nurse’s starts have feelings toward him because of his ability. There are emotional moments when Shaun feels cheated especially with the nurse when he asked her which part she was cheating. Dr. Glassman’s desire to hire him is also seen to be impaired with a psychological self-concept that associates strong emotions that made him justify why Shaun should be employed. Shaun is also a character that was seen to have an A+ misanthrope with an IQ that had a lot of staunchly defended pain, misery, and depression.

The episode also develops some intriguing chemistry where there is a lot of sentimentalities mainly from Glassman as to why he should hire an Autistic guy (Farrell n.d). There is also a 180 degree flip from Glassman’s anger where the script relentlessly takes us through the heartstrings of the debate about Shaun. The film also shows how Shaun cares about people where his empathy clearly showed his positive sides. His utter cluelessness about people in some ways indicates a type of doctor whose decision replaces the narrative of the autistic character by being concerned about people’s health

Logos

Before the shooting of the film, the writers did an excellent research concerning autism. They did this by consulting people and watching documentaries before they developed the unique character of Shaun. It was also logical because the character was meant to represent all autistic aspects. Autism in real sense affects a person’s skill. Therefore the role of the surgeon was expected to show that he could not become one but his motor skills made him to demonstrate his capabilities. The real challenge of this character was communication because he is always seen to be right but fails to communicate the skills. ‘The good doctor’ also wanted the audience to see how Shaun’s autism helps him become a good and liable doctor (Yanwen 176). The author also tries to use autism as a rationale for elaborating how Shaun was smart but doesn’t come across due to his communication skills. The ‘good doctor’ undercuts the story to show how Shaun’s first case has a lot of suspense before his abilities are discovered.

Conclusion

The good doctor as indicated in the essay is a self-centered film that bases itself f with different feelings and settings. A good example is seen with how the movie starts where Shun a surgeon doctor witnesses a signpost fall on a young boy, Due to his kind heart, Shaun decided to assist the boy and eventually manages to help the boy. This interests the people surrounding him to wanting to find out more about him. Shaun who is an autistic character found challenges when he was employed. For instance, from childhood, Shaun is seen to have suffered because of autism and upon starting work, he is still unable to communicate to the other doctors. As a result, we know the author using ethos, pathos, and logos to elaborate more on the movie. This essay has highlighted the use of ethos, logos, and pathos.

Works Cited

ABC Orders Freddie Highmore The Good Doctor To Series. www.youtube.com/watch?v=msJggy8xtmI.

Farrell, L. “The good doctor.” BMJ, vol. 325, no. 7366, 2002, doi:10.1136/bmj.325.7366.723/a.

Shao, Yanwen. ”Ethos, Logos, Pathos: Strategies of Persuasion in Social/Environmental Reports.” Rhetorical analysis of ‘the good doctor’ series, vol. 33, no. 3, 2013, pp. 159–180., doi:10.1080/0969160x.2013.845035.