Arrowsmith Chapter 18

In which Martin Arrowsmith, earnest and somewhat naïve, undertakes the role of county health officer, facing the rural populace’s stubborn resistance and scorn as he confronts outbreaks of typhoid and small-pox with scientific rigour that unsettles their comfortable complacency. Eventually compelled to leave behind the parochial world of Wheatsylvania, he embarks with Leora toward the bustling city of Nautilus, seeking a larger stage for his idealistic medical ambitions amid the promise of progress and recognition.