Penelope Firtzgerald uses presents the characters in the play as having, very similar characteristics, especially white people and the men and women in the story.
In the second page the when the doctor is first introduced he is seen as a quite, irresponsible, unreliable and extremely feminist man “you can ask a woman to live anywhere” the explicit meaning the whole quote is to say the doctor is quite sexist, however the doctor does use the word “ask” which is not an imperative verb, as he does not mean to demand the woman to live where he please, but simply to ask her, on where the man would like to live. This could show that even though he has sexist thoughts he could be quite unconfident when dealing with women in his life. “But don’t let that worry you. Often by the time I arrive I am not needed” the doctor is telling Mr. Tanner even though you may call for my assistance the birth will already happen, whether it is successful or not, before the doctor can be any assistance. The fact that the doctor knows it will be too late could seem as he is speaking from experience, which suggests that the doctor may have arrive to late in many of these situations already. This shows him as very irresponsible as he fails to help assist with births repeatedly, and asks Mr. Tanner that he should not predict that the Doctor will come.
People generally in the story is seen as quite content with the items they have, although the doctor is quite irresponsible and unreliable, people still wait in his waiting room who need medical assistance “ Some had empty medicine bottles for a refill. There was man with his right arm strapped up, several kids with their mothers” Usually when a patient needs a refill on their medications they do not bring the medicine bottle with them, as it is not necessary as the doctor should provide them with another one, however the patients in this story have brought their own empty medicine bottles to be