"The Father of Modern Gynecology": J. Marion Syms, M.D. (1813--1883)

Joyce Carol Oates, "'The Father of Modern Gynecology'": J. Marion Syms, M.D. (1813–1883)" in Screams From the Dark, ed. Ellen Datlow (Tor Publishing Group: 2022).

The delusion, cruelty, madness, and sick, twisted self-righteousness that the monsters of this story use against human beings is horrifying. The story is told from the perspective of one of the creatures, and we realize that these monsters falsely believe they are doing nothing wrong. They justify their actions to themselves with the most absurd theories and carry on in cruel and self-serving ways. The narrator, too, is beyond redemption; he is discovered to be all the more monstrous when we realize that there are parts of him that could overcome his detestable delusions, but he, nonetheless, gives into his cowardice and wallows in the praise of his superiors.

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