Schneiderman, L. J.: The Appointment

Literature Annotations

Genre	Short Story (7 pp.)
Keywords	Children, Cross-Cultural Issues, Death and Dying, Family Relationships, Grief, Heart Disease, Illness and the Family, Latina/Latino Experience, Love, Mourning, Parenthood, Racism
Summary	A Mexican-American woman has an appointment for her son Jorge to be seen at the Anglo clinic. She insists on keeping the appointment, even though her relatives think she is crazy. She reflects on events in her life--Jorge's congenital heart disease, the fact that she had a tubal ligation after his birth, and that the heart disease might have been a punishment from God. She reflects upon the fact that often people go for clinic appointments, only to find that the Anglo doctors aren't there and another appointment must be made. She carefully selects Jorge's clothes. She takes the crowded bus. Finally, at the clinic two doctors enter after a long wait. One is a psychiatrist. In this last scene it becomes evident that Jorge has already died. His mother has brought a bundle of Jorge's clothes to the clinic for "his" appointment, still hoping for a miracle. Referring to the psychiatrist, the woman doctor tells the mother, "He will make you better."
Source	On Doctoring
Publisher	Simon & Schuster
Edition	1995
Editors	Richard Reynolds & John Stone
Place Published	New York
Miscellaneous	Originally published in Medical Heritage, May/June, 1985.
Annotated by	Coulehan, Jack
Date of Entry	02/22/94
Last Revised	11/30/06