Old Dr. Valentine to His Son
Your hopeless patients will live, Your healthy patients will die. I have only this word to give: Wonder, and find out why
death
doubt
lyric poem
austere
Old Dr. Valentine to His Son - meaning Summary
A Wry Medical Paradox
Nash presents a brief, witty admonition from a physician to his son about the unpredictability of life and death. The poem flips expectations: those deemed hopeless may survive while the healthy may perish. Instead of certainty or dogma, the speaker offers a single counsel—"Wonder, and find out why"—urging curiosity, humility, and ongoing inquiry as the proper stance toward medical and existential mysteries.
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