Birth
by A.J. Cronin
Rapid Learn 2-Minute Revision
Perfect for last-minute revision
2-Minute Revision Video
Video coming soon
This excerpt from A.J. Cronin's novel 'The Citadel' shows the professional commitment and dedication of a young doctor. Andrew Manson, newly qualified and troubled by doubts about love and marriage after a disappointing evening with Christine, is called at midnight to attend Susan Morgan, who after nearly twenty years of marriage is delivering her first child. The difficult labour lasts through the night. The baby is finally born but appears stillborn, white, limp and lifeless. Torn between attending to the collapsing mother and the seemingly dead child, Andrew works desperately on both. Recalling a case of asphyxia, he plunges the baby alternately into hot and cold water and rhythmically presses its chest, refusing to give up. At last the child gasps, cries and comes to life. Overwhelmed, Andrew whispers that he has done something real at last, feeling the deep satisfaction of having brought a life into the world.
Detailed Summary
Detailed Summary Video
Video coming soon
The story celebrates the dedication, perseverance and humane commitment of a doctor. It contrasts Andrew's private doubts and low spirits with his heroic, life-giving effort in the delivery room, showing that meaningful work can restore faith and give life its deepest meaning.
A troubled doctor called at midnight
Returning near midnight from a disappointing evening with Christine, Andrew Manson finds Joe Morgan, a driller, anxiously waiting for him. Joe's wife, married nearly twenty years, is at last expecting their first child. Though listless and preoccupied with gloomy thoughts about failed marriages he has witnessed, Andrew goes with Joe to Number 12 Blaina Terrace.
The long night of waiting
Upstairs, the patient's aged mother and the stout midwife wait beside Susan Morgan. Andrew senses a long wait ahead. He drinks tea in the kitchen, unable to sleep, brooding on marriage and on Christine, while the old woman watches him with wise, unwavering eyes. Realising the case will demand all his attention, he decides to stay until it is over.
A crisis: mother and child in danger
As the night wears on, the delivery becomes critical. The baby is finally born but seems lifeless, a stillborn, white and inert. At the same moment the exhausted mother collapses into a dangerous, near-fatal state. Andrew is faced with an agonising choice, and instinctively fights first to save the mother, giving her an injection and reviving her, leaving the child aside for a moment.
The fight for the child and the reward
Turning to the pale, lifeless child lying under a blanket, Andrew remembers a resuscitation method for asphyxia. He asks for hot and cold water, dips the baby alternately in each and presses its little chest rhythmically, refusing to give up despite the midwife's despair. After a tense, desperate struggle the baby's chest heaves, it gasps, and then it cries and lives. Drenched and exhausted, Andrew feels an overwhelming joy, whispering that this time he has done something real.