A hysterically violent image of medical blunders and poor bedside manner, The Bad Doctors by James Ensor satirizes practitioners of medicinal “healing.” The helpless patient, or rather, victim, sits to the right of the painting on what appears to be a gaudy yellow and blue bed, mouth open in a howl of agony. He raises a single fist to the air, a gesture which typically denotes anger more than pain. Around his neck there seems to be a noose of some sort, which pulls him sharply off toward the right of the painting, and his guts hang out of various open wounds, likely made by the doctors in an attempt to “cure” him of his original ailment.
Meanwhile, the doctors tasked with his treatment argue amongst themselves, brandishing their tools like weapons and involving their assistants in the skirmish. However, some assistants appear more loyal than others. While the nurse to the right attempts to restrain his employer, the one on the left carefully snatches his physician’s pocket book. At some point in the brawl the three central participants became tangled in what appears to be the patient’s intestines, bringing them to an impasse as the bowels ensnare their legs and feet.
Only two of the figures in the painting appear uninvolved in the proceedings. The appalled physician on the right throws his hands up in indignation at his associates’ lack of concern for the patient, shouting in an attempt to calm the storm and redirect attention to the matter at hand. Directly opposite him stands the figure of Death. Death’s placement in the painting, as well as his white garments make him easy to overlook amongst the chaos of the rest of the work. He lifts a hand gently, as if in an attempt to interject an opinion through all the commotion, however he goes unnoticed by the other characters in the piece. While certainly a frightening symbol, he does not take an intimidating stance; instead he appears to feel out of place, as if his work may have been cut out for him.
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