"Emergency"

1. Describe the sense of “emergency” that is created by the story.

The emergent feeling that arises in this story is made possible by Georgie’s intuition to save others who are hopeless. When a patient arrives with a dire injury no one wants to take responsibility for, he’s the only one who can give him proper treatment. As a result, at the appearance of someone in need, Georgie’s inclination to help becomes a lens with which he views every situation as an urgent matter, even when it seems pointless. 

Georgie’s heroic nature doesn’t happen all the time, though, often replaced by his forgetfulness that frames him as a psychotic person. This occurs when he and the narrator accidentally kill a rabbit and its babies. Although he tries to save their lives after running them over with his car, their death is inevitably still his fault. This further creates irony in his character and builds on how his emergency mindset may be the cause of emergent situations.

2. What effect is created/achieved by the “lost driving” section near the end of the story?

The lost driving section achieves emphasizing the irony of Georgie’s impulsiveness compared to his ability to—occasionally—save people. At some point after running over a rabbit in the middle of nowhere, Georgie slices up its stomach to free its babies, providing a grotesque sight for a car that passes by with a family inside. Despite his savior behavior, throughout this ride, Georgie repetitively reveals how lost in the mind he actually is. 

3. How does Johnson’s use of dialogue move the plot along (or does it?) and reveal what his characters are like?

Johnson’s use of dialogue helps a reader interpret the story from the character’s view by including lines that reflect their personality. For example, when the patient walks in, he depicts the nurse as a flippant person with the line “I hope you didn’t do that to him” (p. 2). This could be considered informal in a hospital environment, and casually thrown phrases at other employees suggesting violence is revealing about her work ethic. This eventually does help move the plot along, resulting in no one wanting to service the patient (due to work ethic), and leaving Georgie to pop in and carry out his miracle that will also define his character.