The Scottish doctor and writer Archibald Cronin (1896–1981) lived a long life, leaving a lot of stories, short sketches and about three dozen voluminous literary works as a legacy to his descendants. Most of his books, written with an easy-to-read syllable, were filmed in the very first years after publication.
Today, readers' interest has again arisen in one of the most popular works created by Archibald Cronin, the Citadel. The reviews of this book suggest that the problems raised in it are relevant today, although almost eighty years have passed since the writing.
To penetrate all the vicissitudes of the plot, of course, it is better to turn to the original source. Moreover, the book has been translated into many languages of the world, including Russian. A summary of Cronin's novel The Citadel is presented in this publication. We hope that having met him, you will not deny yourself the pleasure of reading the work in full.
Acquaintance with the main character and place of events
In the first chapter of the novel “The Citadel,” Archibald Cronin paints the atmosphere of business English society in the 1920s before the reader. Andrew Manson, a novice doctor, brings fate to a small mining town, where he should become an assistant to the local Aesculapius Page.
Upon arrival, Andrew finds out that he will have to do all the work alone, as his boss is bedridden with paralysis. Page's wife, a grumpy aging lady, received Manson’s arrival with hostility and is doing her best to harm him.
Personality formation
As a medical practitioner, Archibald Cronin Citadel is dedicated to health issues. The novel describes the first steps of a young doctor in his chosen field. Manson's practice does not start very well. Called to a sick patient, Andrew finds it difficult to determine the cause of the disease. Soon he meets Philip Danny, who, although he behaves somewhat arrogantly, still helps a colleague make the correct diagnosis for the patient.
It turns out that the city was threatened by an epidemic of typhoid. The reason for this was unsanitary conditions caused by malfunctions in the sewer system. Manson, along with Denny, are turning to the authorities with a request for repairs. Having achieved nothing, young people decide to blow up the rusted sewer pipe, which became the source of the spread of deadly infection.
The origin of love
The book “The Citadel” (A. Kronin wrote it in 1937) not only reveals the layer of social problems of that time, but also tells about the personal experiences of the heroes. On one of his days in Blanelli, Andrew Manson meets Christine Barlow. Their meeting takes place in an educational institution, where the doctor went to oblige teachers to prevent children whose brothers or sisters are suffering from measles. Miss Barlow, a school teacher, immediately liked Manson.
A little later, he learns about the difficult fate of a girl who lost her parents early, and eventually Christine completely takes possession of his heart. In Manson’s soul, the fire of true love begins to flare up.
Noble thoughts
“The Citadel” (Cronin’s novel) is a story about the moral throwing of the hero, faced with a choice: the true purpose of the doctor or the thirst for enrichment. In the first chapters of the work, Manson appears before the reader as a knight from medicine, all of his aspirations are aimed at selfless help to people, regardless of their income and status in society.
Having met at the congress of the British Medical Union with Freddie Hamson, Andrew is experiencing genuine torment of conscience when he hears the arguments of his former classmate about his reputation, money, career advancement. It is possible that the prototype of the protagonist is Cronin himself. The "Citadel" in an art form expresses the author's own worldviews about the profession of a doctor.
First successes and forced relocation
Andrew has achieved some success in his work. He manages to cure one of the inhabitants of the city from mental illness, as well as save from the death of a newborn child, whose mother suffered from infertility for a long time. The merits of the young man do not go unnoticed, the management of the mine offers Manson to take the position of a doctor instead of Dr. Page. Andrew nobly rejects this prospect, not wanting to leave his boss without a livelihood.
Having received five guineas from a woman’s family for nursing a baby, Manson puts them into a bank account. The wife of Dr. Page finds out about this and accuses Andrew of stealing money from her husband. The young doctor calls witnesses to his innocence and forces the malicious Mrs. Page to apologize. After this, Manson decides to leave the service and soon moves to another mining town, where he was offered a job.
Principle and rebellion
Having settled in the town of Eberlo, Manson invites his lover to marry him. Christine agrees, and the newlyweds begin to equip life in a new place. Almost immediately, Andrew got into trouble in the service. Miners express dissatisfaction with the principle of the doctor, who refuses to issue unjustified sick leave. Soon the conflict calms down, and the Manson spouses become regulars in the circle of the city elite, make friends with the owner of coal mining enterprises, Richard Vaughn.
At the same time, Andrew met with a dentist named Con Bolend. This person has a cheerful character and an optimistic outlook on life. A friendship is established between Manson and Bolend. Together they try to persuade the rest of the colleagues to stop deducting the percentage of their income to the chief doctor of the town. Manson was the initiator of the rebellious idea, but no one supported his dentist friend.
Step by step leads his hero to take another moral milestone called the "citadel" Cronin. The film, based on the novel in 1938, was presented at the Academy Award in four categories at once. And we must assume that the main role in the popularity of the film was played by the skill of the writer and the relevance of the social problems raised.
Scientific victories and personal tragedies
Manson is obsessed with plans to change the existing order in the country's health system. He understands that this requires not only the work of a practicing physician, but also deep scientific knowledge. Andrew immersed himself in study, explores the problem of lung diseases in workers engaged in coal mining, after which he successfully defends his dissertation and receives a doctorate.
Manson's work was praised by domestic and foreign experts. The American scientist Richard Stillman sends Andrew a letter where he enthusiastically speaks about the results of his scientific research.
At the same time, a personal tragedy occurs in Manson’s life. Kristin, being pregnant, falls from a dilapidated bridge and loses her baby. In addition, it turns out that the resulting trauma forever deprives the young woman of the joy of motherhood.
After some time, fate again puts the doctor on the bandwagon. The miners, who had a grudge against him from the very beginning, accused Manson of bullying animals, since most of his scientific experiments were conducted on guinea pigs. An urgent meeting of the working committee is going to remove Andrew from the post of doctor. But Manson, without waiting for any decisions, voluntarily resigns.
Moving to London and getting to know the capital's elite
Archibald Cronin throws his hero into the abyss of new unknown events. The citadel, full of temptations, opens its arms to Manson. Left without work, Andrew unexpectedly receives an invitation to become a specialist in the Committee for Labor Pathology in coal and metal mines. After moving with his wife to London, Manson is convinced that the work in the committee is not for him, since he does not make it possible to realize his professional knowledge.
Having left an uninteresting position, Andrew is trying to find a private practice. But this requires financial resources, which are not enough in the family. By happy coincidence, the patient of Manson becomes Martha Cramb - an employee of one of the most prestigious metropolitan stores. The woman recommends the doctor who cured her of the allergy to her friends. Soon, Andrew Manson met with wealthy and influential London businessmen, whose wives turned to him for medical help.
In the paws of the "golden calf"
It is not with fire, sword, and copper pipes that Dr. Cronin tests the hero. The citadel takes the image of a golden calf, in the power of which Manson is. Forgetting his noble impulses, Andrew becomes a member of the community of doctors who profit from the pain and suffering of patients. For the sake of obtaining large profits, these aesculapians mislead people, directing them to expensive, but often useless and even hazardous procedures.
Manson is involved in these frauds, despite the tearful requests of his wife not to sell his professional honor and human dignity. Revenues are skyrocketing; Andrew conducts private practice in one of the most expensive areas of the city. Christine condemns her husband’s behavior, but her reproaches cause only irritation in Manson. Having sent his wife all summer to the mining town at the invitation of the four Vaughn, Andrew has an affair with one of the ladies of high society - Francis Lawrence.
Unexpected insight and pain of loss
During the simplest operation performed by Dr. Ivory, who is considered an experienced surgeon in the community, a patient dies in front of Manson. Andrew is aware that he is in the circle of quack doctors who, carried away by profit, have lost their professional skills. Manson, ashamed of his own weakness and involvement in these frauds, decides to leave the community.
After some time, an old friend of Con Bolend informs Manson that his daughter is hopelessly ill. In a London clinic, a girl suffering from consumption was not able to help. Andrew sends Mary to a country sanatorium, where she undergoes surgery according to a new method developed by Richard Stillman. As a result, Bolend’s daughter is completely recovering.
The husband's insight fills Christine's soul with joy. One day, laying the table for dinner, the woman recalls that she did not buy the cheese that Andrew likes so much. Rushing into a store across the street from their home, Christine dies under the wheels of a bus.
A. Cronin, The Citadel: Summary of the Final Section
Having buried his wife, Manson, along with Philip Danny, decides to move from the capital to a remote abbey. Having gradually recovered from the loss, Andrew is going to open a multidisciplinary clinic in one of the provincial towns for money from the sale of London practice. In addition to Philip, Dr. Gope joins the noble cause, whom Manson met while serving on the Committee.
Friends are busy trying to find a suitable building, but suddenly Andrew finds out that a lawsuit has been brought against him for helping a person who does not have the right to practice medicine. It was about Mr. Stillman, who, without a doctor’s diploma, cured a girl with tuberculosis. The initiator of the proceedings was Dr. Ivory, who harbored resentment at Manson when he exposed his professional unsuitability.
Andrew will hear the verdict of the Medical Council. If the case does not turn out in his favor, then medical activity for him will forever be banned. Even the doctor’s lawyer does not believe in a favorable outcome. During the trial, the defender tries to convince the judges that Manson, although committing an illegal act, did not have malicious intent.
Then Andrew himself takes the floor. He turns to the court with a fiery speech, recalling that many of the ascetics who contributed to science did not have a medical education. Manson, citing Louis Pasteur, Vladimir Khavkin, Ilya Mechnikov as an example, urges judges to discard prejudices and look not at diplomas, but at real results.
The medical council justifies Manson, and he and his friends are preparing to leave for the town of Stanborough, where they will open a new clinic. An hour remains before the train departs, which Andrew spends in the silence of the cemetery over the grave of his beloved wife.