Power Of The Doctors In Don Delillo's White Noise

In Don DeLillo’s novel, White Noise, the Gladney family believes that doctors have a higher authority because of their greater knowledge. In addition, the family is also very threatened by the doctors because they feel they are more intelligent and that they have some sort of control over them. For instance, Jack Gladney is especially affected by their power of the doctors after the “airborne toxic event” and when he is exposed to Nyodene Derivative. Out of everyone in the family, Jack demonstrates the he is the most afraid, particularly, because of the information that they hold. Because of their high authority, the doctors are able to make Jack to feel unintelligent and defenseless. Moreover, they make him feel as if his life is in their hands and he is unable to do anything about it.
In one scene in the novel, Wilder is continually crying and Jack and his wife, Babette, cannot figure out why. So, they decide to take their son to the doctor’s office to be able to get some answers. However, just
For instance, when their daughter, Denise, who reads many academic medical texts, recommends them to give Wilder some medication and send him to bed, Jack and Babette ignore her idea and take the boy to the doctor’s office anyway. In the end, the doctor tells the couple that their daughter was right and that a simple aspirin would calm the boy down. Furthermore, when the physician asks Babette why she ignored her own daughter’s advice, she answered with, “She’s a child, not a doctor- that’s why” (DeLillo, 90). Although, Denise’s advice was rational and Wilder’s problem was simply something minor, Jack and Babette still need to hear the advice from someone with more experience in medicine and, most importantly, someone with more authority before they are able to trust their daughter’s