The Final Patient Rhetorical Analysis

An inherent quality all humans share, is the ability to recognize society and the effects we have on the communities around us, and while we all have different interpretations of what is wrong and what’s not, it’s crucial to acknowledge that your own beliefs may sometimes be misleading or contradictory, urging readers to always take a step back and review the evidence before making a judgement. In “The Final Patient”, Remen utilizes an anecdote, from her own life, to symbolize a much larger societal problem within our healthcare’s structure. Impressively, Remen effectively uses a variety writing techniques to portray a terrifying example of structural violence, which is much more common than is acceptable in a moral society. Remen’s example
Her ideals concerning medicine are put as such, “medicine need[s] to change, […] ways [can] be found to care for people’s hearts and souls as well as their bodies, to empower people in their own healing.” What’s explicitly clear is that, what the original doctor had done was harmful and inconsiderate, while on the other hand, what Remen had done was helpful and, in the end, inspiring. Evidence formed from this anecdotal story shows us how Delia was misjudged by the medical staff and how her baby was almost taken away, despite her innocence. Remen heroically intervened and upon closer analysis could recognize a blatant misdiagnosis from a clearly unqualified doctor, and in turn, making a substantial difference in Delia’s life. In addition, Remen wrote regarding a visit, “Teejay had become a delicious and loving toddler. He shrieked and put up his arms to be hugged as soon as he saw me.” This sentence could have perhaps been added to emphasize how helpful and important she had been to Delia and Teejay, one small action can be the difference between a good or bad
Moreover, in each sentence Remen excellently uses punctuations which makes the story more understandable and enjoyable to read, she evokes sympathy through relatability, and she delivers a strong message about social violence in the emotionally dense telling in a mere one-and-a-half-page story. Social awareness is empirical to understanding injustice in various topics universally, particularly healthcare in “The Final Patient.” Recognizing social violence and the effect it has on other’s well-being is a crucial component in reforming these practices, such as ones that enable social injustices like Delia’s situation, progressing and sanctioning certain actions to move towards a moral society where more people are actively trying to increase awareness of social