It’s been a while since I’ve watched a well-conceived and unified episode like this one so let me go through the points briefly.

First, the themes.

The screenwriter wasn’t subtle about this episode’s theme. It’s empathy and sympathy.

People generally interchange these words. But in this episode, the contrast between the two concepts is showcased. The audience were conveniently given a visual explanation of the difference. For empathy, the lunette above the door on the left features a brain. That’s because empathy involves the mind. It’s the ability to perceive and understand the personal situation of another person.

In contrast, the lunette above the left door shows a heart. The heart represents sympathy because sympathy involves feelings. Sympathy is the ability to, not only feel another person’s emotional state, but also to feel sorry for him/her.

If you ask me whether it’s better to have empathy or sympathy, I’ll answer that it depends on the circumstances.

To me, the ability to sympathize and feel pity or compassion for someone in distress is often the primary reason an individual reaches out to help even a stranger.

See this turtle?

Doctors are not any different. It’s vital that a doctor is able to sympathize with his patients and put himself in their shoes because a) he’ll validate their feelings, and b)  he’ll be moved to alleviate the pain as best as he can.

Note: One good scene when sympathy was shown in this episode was when Master Kim stepped in to comfort the crying mother. She had just overheard Prof Cha’s disapproval of the surgery. Prof Cha believed that the patient had little chance of survival and Dr Seo was opening himself up to a lawsuit.

The mother was naturally distraught and Master Kim sympathized with her.

Kim: Ma’am. We will try to save Yurim.
Mom: Can she live?
Kim: (looking away for second) You may have heard this already, but she’s in a very bad condition. It will be hard to access the bleeding areas due to adhesion, and because of her underlying disease, she may not make it through the surgery. Even after surgery, there could be respiratory failure. We can temporarily keep her alive with ECMO. But besides a lung transplant, there may not be any other options.
Mom: (crying)
Kim: However, ma’am, we should still do everything we can, right? Yurim…she did her best to get this far. Right?

He’s placing himself in the shoes of the mother and daughter. He’s moved by the mother’s tears and he believes that the daughter wants to live since she’s kept up the good fight for 12 years.

Mom: (crying) Please save her. Please save Yurim, Doctor. Please save my daughter.
Kim: Okay, let’s give it a shot.

Thus, he decides to ignore all the drawbacks he just mentioned and proceed with the surgery. This is Dr. Romantic being compassionate and sympathetic. This is Dr. Romantic taking a big leap of faith to operate and save the girl despite the numerous hazards. This is quintessential Dr. Romantic.

However, let’s be realistic here.

Being sympathetic isn’t all helpful when a doctor gets so caught up in the feelings of his patient that the patient’s emotions become his own feelings. For one, there’s the loss of objectivity. For another, there’s emotional fatigue.

When a medical professional becomes overly sympathetic, he risks getting sucked into the physical and psychological problems of their patients and neglecting his own emotional needs as well as the needs of those around him.

Note: One good example of a doctor so bogged down by his medical responsibilities is Dr. Jung. He discovered that his daughter was missing and was beside himself with worry. However, he couldn’t go out to look for her himself, so he asked for assistance from the police.

Jung: (on the phone with the police) This is Byeol’s father who just made a report. Have you still not heard anything?
Police: (said something, probably asked him why he couldn’t look for his daughter himself)
Jung: No. Right now, I’m on duty at the hospital. I’m on duty right now so please find her quickly. She’s only nine years old. It’s late at night and cold out. I beg you please. Okay, thank you. Bye.

It’s awful that he couldn’t take personal time off when it was a family emergency. He was in dire need of work-life balance, and I’m not surprised that his wife had blamed his job at the hospital…and Master Kim…for their estrangement.

This episode is showing us that sympathy is great, but in moderation.

In contrast, empathy – in particular, clinical empathy – is greatly needed by doctors. Of course, a doctor must still be able to perceive the pain and distress of their patients. But he should understand the importance of isolating, moderating and regulating his personal feelings. The best way he can decide what’s in the interest of their patient is to assess the situation in a detached, objective, and unemotional manner.

Note: One good scene of a doctor showing clinical empathy was Prof Cha. Mind you, he was totally lacking in sympathy in the beginning. Nevertheless, after he was persuaded to perform the surgery, he showed empathy. He graciously accepted the mother’s apology and reassured her that he was going to do his best. His feelings weren’t irrelevant in the decision-making process. Unlike Master Kim who performed the surgery because he keenly felt the anguish of the mother and identified with the daughter’s struggles, Prof Cha maintained a clinical approach.

Cha: (bringing up the humidier incident to clear the air) I still don’t believe what I did was wrong. All I did 12 years ago was (to state) my opinion as a doctor, and my thoughts on the matter still haven’t changed.
Mother: (tearing up)
Cha: I never sided with anyone and did not make it personal. Your daughter’s surgery today will also be that way. As a doctor, I will do the best that I can without prejudice or personal feelings. You can count on that.
Mother: (sobbing) Please take care of her. (bowing)

This is in line with what he told the Assemblywoman in the previous episode. He told that woman, “in trauma, we don’t treat patients based on who arrived first. We must treat patients who are more urgent.” He meant that he performs his job with objectivity, without bias or favor. His feelings aren’t involved in the performance of his medical duty.

So, there you have my explanation as to whether it’s better to have sympathy or empathy. Sometimes, sympathy is essential. Sometimes, empathy is paramount. It depends on the situation.

Personally, I relate with Prof Cha. 🙂

Second, the symbolism.

If the screenwriter wasn’t subtle about this episode’s themes of empathy and sympathy, then the director wasn’t restrained either about including the SYMBOL in the scenes. Can you guess what the symbol is?

😊 The doors.

Note: when the doors opened, the man saw a black void. This meant that the man still had to take a leap of faith. He wouldn’t know what was waiting for him until he stepped in and plunged into the darkness. Kinda like Master Kim’s decision. The future would still remain pretty uncertain for him no matter which path he decided to take.

Now, if you rewatch this episode, you’ll find doors everywhere.

From the start, the door of the bus opened and the passengers disembarked. The little girl walked down the bus aisle and down the steps of the door.

Then she walked towards the closed doors of the bus station.

She walked inside to talk to a janitor standing in front of the doors. He pointed her to the doors where she had to wait for the bus.

Once she arrived at Doldam Hospital, she stood at another set of doors again.

She opened the door and walked in.

Master Kim found her there and wondered what she was doing there when the doors were already closed.

The little girl Byeol is metaphorically the princess who opened the doors for Master Kim. She was going to make him realize that he had been so focused on one goal (i.e., to provide the best care for his patients) that he failed to see the big picture (i.e., the other lives in his care).

I like that idea that Byeol subverted the common fairy tale trope of a damsel in distress. She was no such thing. She had to brave:

the cold (while just wearing a comfy pair of fuzzy Ugg mules)
the distance (from Seoul to Gangwon on a bus)
and the “mean” ogre (aka Master Kim)

to talk to great Master Kim himself.

Kim: But why did you come looking for me?
Byeol: I have something important to discuss with you.

But their discussion was interrupted by the two hospital men eavesdropping at the door.

Master Kim and Byeol resumed their conversation later.

Byeol: Do you know what “estranged” is?
Kim: “Estranged” is just “estranged”. Why?
Byeol: My mom and dad have been estranged for a year now. They’re not divorced but it’s pretty similar.
Kim: I see.
Byeol: Mom said it was because of you, Master Kim. She said you’re holding on to him and wouldn’t let him go. So he wouldn’t leave this place. So if I’m being honest, I came here to ask you to let him go, but…

Kim: But?
Byeol: I think my mom and dad just don’t get along. I heard them fighting earlier. Even at my age, I don’t yell and fight like they do. Gosh…

Meaning, Byeol gave Master Kim the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps her mom just needed to find someone to blame and used the hospital job as an excuse, when the real reason for the estrangement was that she no longer loved her husband.

Compared to Byeol, her dad chickened out. He didn’t want to share his personal problem with Master Kim.

Kim: (asking Dr. Jung) Insu, are you estranged from your wife? Why didn’t you tell me?
Jung: I’m embarrassed. It’s not something you should be worrying about.

To me, Byeol’s conversation with Master Kim revealed how much he was like a closed door. He’d shown endless sympathy and compassion to his patients, but he failed to empathize and understand what his staff doctors were going through.

Dr. Jung didn’t want to share his problem with him. Dr. Seo didn’t want to share his anxiety with him.

Prof Cha was right to point Master Kim’s flaw — but he could have chosen a better time and place, though.

This was a good dialogue. It was intense and it highlighted the difference in their methods to achieve the same goal.

Cha: What are you doing?
Kim: How is this a trauma center when everything moves so slowly? I gave you the fast lane, so why do you keep hitting the brakes? Don’t you know that every second counts when it comes to a severe trauma case?
Cha: It’s not because I don’t know that! It’s because the patient can’t be operated on. You’re operating on a patient with an obvious outcome. What are you trying to do? Do you only see the patient and not the doctor?

Note that the camera zoomed out and showed a door behind them.

Cha: Just how many doctors did you screw over like this? Last year’s records alone show 20 cases of Doldam Hospital’s doctors called in for investigation and 11 of those cases were Dr. Seo’s. But you, you said he’s your most cherished pupil so why do you keep making him perform ridiculous operations?
Cha: Why do you keep putting that kind of risk on the doctors? Just why?
Kim: Because that’s a doctor’s job. He’s doing what a doctor should. Should there be another reason?
Cha: (scoff) You’re a lunatic….(Dr. Seo exits) That’s why you, Bu Yongju. Even with your skills, you will forever be known as a third-rate doctor. Do you know that?
Kim: Is that so? Then so be it. (mocking)
Cha: You lunatic.
Kim: By the way, did you know that the patient on her way to the OR, Bae Yurim, is a humidifier victim?
Cha: (stunned)
Kim: She came to me as a patient two years ago, but she started being sick over 12 years ago. She was only eight years then. She endured 12 years without being able to breathe properly. Can you even imagine the pain she went through?
Cha: (no answer)

Cha couldn’t answer. He must find it hard to imagine the pain because he doesn’t approach the problem via sympathy, like Master Kim does.

Kim: Even if I am a third-rate doctor, if I can do anything to help, I’m willing to help. Got it?

This is Master Kim’s ultimate directive. When he dies, this should be engraved on his tombstone. lol.

Note: Master Kim didn’t want to hear Prof Cha’s side because he dismissed it as irrelevant. But he learned about it from the child Byeol anyway. After his conversation with the child, it dawned on him that Prof Cha had a valid point.

Master Kim prided himself in going to great lengths to save his patients, but he failed to show sympathy or empathy for his own doctors’ struggles. His oversight had caused them pain, and he was dismayed.

In his desire to speed up the opening of the Trauma Center, he overwhelmed Dr. Jung with the responsibility of leading the medical team and looking after the incompetent Dr. Yang. After the accidental death of the assemblywoman’s son, Dr. Jung was so guilt-ridden.

Moreover, in his desire to save lives, he emboldened Dr. Seo to perform risky surgeries. In Prof Cha’s view, those were “ridiculous operations.” But Master Kim had inculcated his pupil Dr Seo with this grandiose idea that performing such surgeries is “finding romance.”

So, like a model student, Dr. Seo was eager to live up to Master Kim’s standards. He pushed himself to quickly finish the operation on the humidifier victim Yurim but in his haste, he nicked his finger.

Dr. Seo admitted as much to Master Kim later.

Notice again the doors in the background.

In the end, Master Kim had to walk back what he told Prof Cha.

Kim: What are you going to do? Do you want to perform his surgery?
Cha: What’s your real reason for doing this?
Kim: As you said, I only know one thing. So in one person’s eyes, I seem reckless. In another’s, I seem dangerous. And in someone else’s, I may seem like a lunatic. But I was okay with that. I didn’t care.

He meant that opinions of other people about him didn’t bother him. He was only focused on saving his patient’s lives.

Kim: However…(turning his back and sighing) now I’m not sure if it’s okay with the others.

I don’t think Prof Cha actually knew who Master Kim was alluding to. To me, Master Kim was referring to the doctors, like Dr. Jung and Dr. Seo. He realized that his obduracy and his single-minded pursuit of saving his patients’ lives have had a negative impact of destroying the lives of his doctors.

Kim: (turning to face Prof Cha) So show me how would you do it, what solution do you have in mind. First, help Yurim get her life back the one that stopped 12 years ago. Then, your time here will begin anew.

Meaning, he was willing to open the door a little to Prof Cha’s medical approach and management style, If Prof Cha could restore Yurim to good health, he was willing to overlook their past differences and start all over again.

But is this even possible?

Third, romantic-realist dichotomy.

Aside from the obvious sympathy-empathy dichotomy, there’s another polarity going on. The realist as represented by Prof Cha versus the romantic as epitomized by Dr. Romantic himself.

The gulf between them in this shot is metaphorical. There are two divides and it’ll be tough bridging the gap.

Dr. Seo’s closing observation appears to be a foreshadowing. He said, “At that time, I didn’t realize that the more solid your heart is, the more difficult and meticulous the trials become. That the more solid it is, even the small cracks can leave a mark.”

In short, he’s predicting that Master Kim will have a tough time reconciling his romantic heart with Prof Cha’s way of thinking.

I agree. Master Kim is solidly romantic. Sure, he uses his genius brains, but he leads with his big heart. Up until now, his “romantic” ways have worked because in that small town, he was the biggest fish. He was unchallenged.

But now, there’s another big fish, and this big fish has the experience and the know-how to lead a big hospital. He’s from Seoul.

Many viewers view Prof Cha as a bad guy. I didn’t. Remember: I said he’s a tough father, but a loving one. He holds his daughter Eun Jae to higher standards because he wants her to do well, not because he wants her to fail. There’s a difference, you know. And I like that he consistently has a full meal ready for her when she wakes up or comes home. He serves her calmly, with no fuss, no muss. Unlike Master Kim, he knows how to be a father, to live with a family, to balance work-life demands, and to worry about a loved one. Master Kim never had a family of his own.

To me, Prof Cha is necessary for Master Kim to improve. As the saying goes, “iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” A perfect male lead is a static character, and I would have found it tiresome to watch a whole season of everybody in that hospital slavishly worshipping the ground Master Kim walked on. The arrival of Prof Cha is necessary to open Master Kim to new insight about himself. It can’t be helped that his heart will crack here and there. It’s impossible anyway to create a better and improved Master Kim without breaking some of his old ways, and solidified mindset.

Okay, will watch Ep 7 now.