“The removal of a body from the walled precincts of God’s Acre was viewed by the superstitious and the credulous as nothing less than an interference with the plans of Providence and the Great Resurrection. So the poor ghoul of a body-snatcher became a 'Resurrectionist.’”
What, in a nutshell, is The Doctor and the Devils actually about? Graverobbing for the purpose of…well, why give everything away, right? Suffice to say that the story is about graverobbers, but here we discover why they are referred to not so snidely, but more pompously. There is historical fact associated here, although it is equally as often that graverobbers were known as “resurrection men.” The story does not get into this aspect, of course, but an interesting idea for a paper on the narrative might well be how the terminology of an unpleasant job can impact one’s view. For instance, “sanitation engineer” rather than garbage man applies here in much—okay, in sort of—the same way as calling a graverobber a resurrectionist.
“The science of Anatomy contributes to the great sum of all Knowledge, which is the Truth: the whole Truth of the Life of Man upon this turning earth. And so: Observe precisely. Record exactly. Neglect nothing. Fear no foe. Never swerve from your purpose. Pay no heed to Safety.”
Graverobbing—or resurrectionisting—is a nasty business. It’s a dirty, smelly abomination against the plans of Providence—to both the superstition and the credulous—but nevertheless it is a job that must be done for the greater good. Standing at the lecture hall of his Academy, Rock is all scientist, describing how the aim must always be “the pursuit of the knowledge of Man in his entirety” in which the purpose of anatomical study of skin, bones, organs and flesh is for the purpose of equipping the collective human mind “with a knowledge that will enable us to search beyond the body.” In other words, Dr. Rock is setting himself up for a reckoning with conscience. And that can’t be studied from afar. Well, it can, but it’s hardly the same thing, right? In the end, the question will become: did Dr. Rock put as much effort into heeding safety as he did in fearing no foe?
“Oh, my God, I knew what I was doing!”
The final lines of the story answer that question. Dr. Rock’s reckless pursuit of knowledge in the face of fearing no one eventually leads to coming face to face with the greatest fear of them all: regret. Did he the right thing? More importantly, did he do the right thing for the right reasons? It is a story lifted straight from proverbial assumptions, a story that inquires whether it is true that pride goeth before a fall. Pride—hubris is a more correct term—is the doctor’s downfall.
