My Hypnotic Patient
Summary
*By the Author of "The Medicine Lady"
Dr. Halifax arrives at an Asylum to cover his friend Dr. Poynter’s position. Before Dr. Poynter leaves on his holiday, he introduces Dr. Halifax to the Asylum patients. Miss. Whittaker is a patient that looks sad, but otherwise appears sane. Dr. Poynter says, however, that Miss. Whittaker is guilty of murder.
During his first night at the Asylum, Dr. Halifax awakes from a nightmare to a chaotic scene. After sending the patients back to their rooms, he learns that a patient named Tommy escaped and lit fires along the corridors. Miss. Whittaker managed to stop him, but she was injured. As Dr. Halifax tends to her wounds, Miss. Whittaker mistakes him for her friend Dr. Walter Anderson and makes strange comments about submitting her will and obeying. The next morning, Dr. Halifax asks the hospital staff about Miss. Whittaker and her comments. Nobody has heard of Dr. Anderson, but Dr. Halifax learns that Miss. Whittaker killed Frederick Willoughby, a man she did not know. As there was no motive, her actions were classified as “dangerous homicidal insanity” (169). Upon reflection, Dr. Halifax doubts that Miss. Whittaker is insane.
When Miss. Whittaker’s health improves, Dr. Halifax tries to speak with her about Dr. Anderson. The girl is reluctant to speak of him, but admits that seeing her former doctor would make her very happy. Reluctantly, Miss. Whittaker provides Dr. Anderson’s address in Fulham. Dr. Halifax travels to Fulham, but first asks about Dr. Anderson at the nearest doctor’s office. He learns that Dr. Anderson engages in hypnotism, “a dangerous remedy with small advantages attached to it, and possibilities of much evil” (172). Dr. Halifax dislikes Dr. Anderson for this, but the mysterious doctor appears professional. When Dr. Anderson hears that Miss. Whittaker is unwell, he cancels all of his appointments and the two doctors return to the Asylum.
Unfortunately, Miss. Whittaker’s heart is failing and the doctors agree that she will soon die. Dr. Anderson confesses to Dr. Halifax that Miss. Whittaker is not insane; it is he who hated Frederick Willoughby. Through the study of hypnotism, Dr. Anderson gained a great power over Miss. Whittaker and could not resist using this power for evil. Even though Dr. Anderson did not direct Miss. Whittaker to kill Frederick Willoughby, he intentionally influenced her to hate him and cause his death. Dr. Anderson is willing to confess to his crimes in court if it will save Miss. Whittaker, but it is too late. The two doctors are called back to Miss. Whittaker, who has visions of the murder on her deathbed. When the girl dies Dr. Anderson leaves, and Dr. Halifax knows that the man will never use hypnotism again.
About The Story
The "Stories from the Diary of a Doctor" series might interest fans of "Sherlock Holmes". Instead of solving crimes, however, the protagonist Dr. Halifax solves medical mysteries. Most of the illustrations in The Strand follow the doctor’s investigation. In the fourth, fifth, and sixth images, Dr. Halifax is questioning a Nurse, Miss. Whittaker, and Dr. Anderson, respectively, on his quest to discover whether or not Miss. Whittaker is sane. Like Holmes, Dr. Halifax looks for clues, but the doctor is not as all-knowing as his contemporary. It is only when Dr. Anderson confesses to his crime is the mystery truly solved.
In “My Hypnotic Patient”, Dr. Halifax must use medical science for the understanding and treatment of patients with mental health concerns. The story is, however, also a reminder of how psychology was just emerging as a field in the late nineteenth century. While mental health concerns were treated by doctors, treatment strategies were often contested. Hypnotism is one example of a treatment strategy that was debated in the nineteenth century. Though hypnotism is used in the twenty-first century to support behavioural concerns (i.e.: it can help patients quit smoking), in the nineteenth century, some believed it could be used for mind control.
As the sixth illustration makes clear, Dr. Anderson has many books and he is well-dressed. Moreover, in the seventh illustration, he appears to have a strong relationship with his patient Miss. Whittaker. The doctor is not portrayed as an amateur, or someone with evil intentions. On the contrary, even Dr. Halifax admits that he is professional. The story ponders the possibility that hypnotism could be a legitimate way to treat patients, and on the other hand, it considers how hypnotism could be used for either genuine or nefarious psychological purposes.