A seed falls into the soil and grows into a sapling, then it cannot be transplant casually, or it will not be able to survive. While people are different from plants because people have emotion. It can be flexible when dealing with problems. If the problem can not be settled in this way, there will always be another more suitable way to solve it. In the novel An Enemy of the People, by Henrik Ibsen, Thomas Stockmann, doctor of the new municipal baths of a coastal town in Norway, is a headstrong fool. Although he wants to do something good for people, he is too naive, stubborn and irresponsible. Doctor Stockmann is an extreme idealist, who never considers about reality and consequences. After finding the truth of the baths, he wants to publish his report about pollution to let everyone knows. But he does not think of consequences. It will make the town lose at least three thousand crowns. After persuaded by mayor, his brother, he still insists on publishing the report. And he says “ This is only the beginning. We will go on to other subjects and blow up every lie we live by!”(p333) He believes that he can expose the truth and become a hero of the town. However, he never thinks about majority may against him and it is impossible for him to against majority by himself. But he still cannot realize the situation. After protested by majority, he says “You are fighting for the truth,and that’s why you are alone. And that makes you strong. We are the strongest people in the world...”(p380) But there is nobody support him expect his family, how could he becomes strong. So finally, he still lives in his ideal. He is too naive to believe that truth can defeat everything.
Doctor Stockmann is so opinionated so that he never accepts dissuasion from others. At the beginning of the play, mayor persuade doctor that“You have an ingrained tendency to go your own way, Thomas,and that simply can’t go in a well-organized society. The individual really must subordinate himself to the over-all, or to the authorities who are in charge of the general welfare.”(p303)And he warns doctor of being careful because someday he might pay dearly for it. But doctor seems to does not care about what mayor says. He still do things as his will. And after doctor decide to publish the report, at first, Catherine, Doctor Stockmann’s wife, objects to his idea of publishing the report. When doctor and Hovstad, an editor of People’s Daily, discuss about publishing the report, Catherine comes in. She says to doctor that she wants him home and tells him Hovstad is not his friend. But doctor does not listen to her, and says “He is my friend! Any man who shares my risk is my friend! ...”(p343) But Hovstad, who is considered as doctor’s friend, betrays doctor because of benefit. He always think he is right, and does not listen to the persuasion from others.
He never considers about himself and his family. After he against the majority in public, he and his family get in trouble. It is described that “The windows are broken. There is great disorder. ... It’s cold in the house.”(p360) Certainly, his family can not get away with it, Petra, his daughter, is fired by school, and his sons are not allowed to go to school. However, all of these just because of his spur of the moment action. But his family is innocent, they should not suffer these. It is really unfair to his family. So Doctor Stockmann is irresponsible to his family.
Throughout the novel, Doctor Stockmann shows a character who is stubborn and does not know how to be flexible. He is too naive to believe that truth can overcome everything. Also, he does not accept dissuasion from others and never considers his family. Although it is important to pursuit truth, what more important is to learn how to be flexible. Sometimes, there must be another more suitable way to solve the problem.