Emergency by Denis Johnson
"Emergency" by Denis Johnson is a short story set in an Iowa City hospital, narrated by an emergency room worker who recounts a wild night involving his friend Georgie, an orderly known for stealing drugs. The narrative begins with the narrator searching for Georgie during a break, only to find him high and struggling to function. The plot takes a dramatic turn when they treat a patient, Terrence Weber, who arrives with a hunting knife lodged in his eye. In a surprising twist, Georgie successfully removes the knife, leading to Weber's miraculous recovery.
After their shift, still under the influence of drugs, the two friends embark on a chaotic adventure in Georgie's pickup truck, which involves a series of bizarre and tragicomic events, including the discovery of a pregnant rabbit. As they wander in the woods, they experience disorientation and unusual weather conditions, ultimately finding themselves lost but eventually returning to work on time. The story blends themes of addiction, the fragility of life, and the unexpected capabilities of individuals in crisis, capturing a poignant moment that highlights both the darkness and resilience present in their lives.
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Emergency by Denis Johnson
First published: 1991
Type of plot: Psychological
Time of work: 1973
Locale: Iowa City, Iowa
Principal Characters:
The narrator , an emergency room workerGeorgie , his friendTerrence Weber , a patientHardee , a hitchhiker
The Story
Told in the first person, "Emergency" begins when the narrator has a break in his emergency room job at an Iowa City hospital, so he goes searching for his friend Georgie, an emergency room orderly who often steals drugs from the hospital. The narrator finds Georgie in the operating room. Despite having mopped the floor several times, Georgie insists that it is still covered in blood. The narrator, realizing Georgie is already high on one of the drugs that he has filched, asks him to share. He does, and both characters become so high on the mystery drug that they have trouble functioning.
Soon after, a patient named Terrence Weber arrives. He has a hunting knife protruding from his one good eye, and his other eye is glass. When the floor doctor sees this, he panics at the potential difficulty in removing the knife without damaging the eye and causing brain damage. So he orders the narrator to call several specialists while Georgie preps Weber for surgery. When Georgie returns from prepping Weber, he is holding the knife, which he has removed from Weber's eye. Miraculously, the man recovers, and his eye is essentially undamaged.
The next morning, still high on the unknown drug, the two emergency room workers take off in Georgie's orange pickup. On their way home from the county fair, they become lost. Georgie runs over a jackrabbit, and intending to make rabbit stew, he drives back to retrieve the slain animal. As he begins to cut it open with the hunting knife he took from Weber's eye, he discovers that the rabbit was pregnant. In a misguided effort inspired by his drug-induced state, Georgie carries the bloody rabbit fetuses back to the truck in his shirt, thinking that he can keep them alive.
However, Georgie and the narrator are still lost, and when it grows dark, they finally pull over because the headlights are not working. Leaving the truck, they begin wandering in the woods and soon become hopelessly confused. Despite it being only mid-September, an unusual arctic wind has blown in from Canada, and it begins to snow. Georgie and the narrator stumble on what they think is a cemetery but is actually a drive-in theater. A film is running, but there are no cars because the early snowfall had scared them off.
The theater shuts down early because of the lack of customers, and the pair stumble back to the truck, finding it after a great deal of trial and error. Once there, Georgie announces again his desire to save the rabbit fetuses, and the narrator reveals that he has sat on them, and they are therefore a lost cause.
Depressed by the fate of the dead rabbits, the two friends fall asleep in the truck cab. When morning comes, they awaken, find their way back to town, and miraculously arrive at work on time. They meet Terrence Weber leaving the hospital, a totally successful case thanks to Georgie's sudden inspiration to pull out the hunting knife. However, when Terrence shakes Georgie's hand, the drug-rattled orderly does not even recognize the man he healed.
The story ends with a flashback, as the narrator remembers how Georgie had picked up a hitchhiker while they were heading back to town. The hitchhiker, a friend of the narrator's named Hardee, had been drafted into the army and has gone AWOL (away without leave). He declares his need to get to Canada, and Georgie proclaims that he has friends who can get him there. As with Weber and the knife, it is clear to the narrator that Georgie will be able to pull this off.
This is what makes Georgie special—despite his drug-rattled mind, he can still perform wonders. However, it is tragic to consider the incredible potential being wasted through Georgie's unchecked drug urges and the mental deterioration clearly shown through his attempt to save the rabbit fetuses and his inability to remember Weber. Still, when Hardee asks the orderly what his job is, he responds that he saves lives, which is indeed the case.