This successful medical drama, created by David Shore, is now entering its seventh season. The epicenter of the show and a large reason for its success, Dr. Gregory House (as portrayed by Hugh Laurie) is a misanthropic doctor who is seemingly indifferent to his patients as people, compelled to cure them only because of the mental challenge their medical mysteries pose. What makes this anti-hero so appealing to viewers?
Gregory House: Not the Good Doctor
Part of the reason for House’s appeal may lie in viewers’ fatigue of the stereotypical doctor found on television; the infallible, kind, magnanimous soul that will stop at nothing to help his patients and ease their suffering. On shows such as ER, Grey’s Anatomy, even medical shows dating back to MASH, the featured doctors (at least the main characters) evinced a deep sympathy for their patients, as expected of those in the medical profession.
House contradicts the stereotypes. The doctor disregards his patients’ concerns, patronizes them, and displays supreme indifference to their pain, often choosing to put them through suffering if it will help him arrive at a diagnosis. Though this places House squarely on the other end of the spectrum regarding stereotypical TV doctors, it piques the viewers’ interest. In a way, the depiction reduces him from the God-like status of other TV doctors, and makes him human, in a most unpleasant way. He displays all the base sins of humanity – selfishness, narcissism, weakness in the face of indulgence and addiction, pettiness, etc.
Medical Mysteries and their Tenuous Solutions
Though the series has faced criticism regarding medical inaccuracy, to be expected from a Hollywood production, the process of solving medical mysteries is intriguing to those of us who believe in the omniscient powers of our medical professionals. Medicine is not always a certain subject; it requires its fair share of judgment calls.
The Famous Detective
The analogies to other famous detectives have not gone unnoticed by viewers and critics. Most obviously, House is a modern day Sherlock Holmes, an eccentric and isolated genius concerning himself only with the skills and knowledge that interest him, ignoring general social conventions.
Less apparent are reminders of Agatha Christie’s famous Belgian hero, Hercule Poirot; House believes more in the power of thinking, rather than rushing around to get things done. He interacts with his patient only out of necessity, preferring to send others to do that job for him.
Hugh Laurie
Of course, none of this may have worked without the expert acting skills of Hugh Laurie. His portrayal of House manages to make this staunch anti-hero understandable, even likable at times. His character anchors the show through cast changes, relationship changes, and various arcs with potential nemeses. One can only hope he continues to do this through current and future seasons of the show.
Joanna Kalafatis - null
