An Enemy of the People

by Henrik Ibsen

Peter Stockmann. To him? Indeed! It is true I have heard from time to time that some people are of that opinion. At the same time I must say I imagined that I took a modest part in the enterprise.

Petra. There is so much falsehood both at home and at school. At home one must not speak, and at school we have to stand and tell lies to the children. Horster. Tell lies?

Dr. Stockmann. Yes, yes—only give me time, and you shall know all about it. If only I had Peter here now! It just shows how we men can go about forming our judgments, when in reality we are as blind as any moles——

Dr. Stockmann. And the Baths—we have called them the “main artery of the town’s life-blood,” the “nerve-centre of our town,” and the devil knows what else—— Billing. “The town’s pulsating heart” was the expression I once used on an important occasion——

Dr. Stockmann. The whole place is a pesthouse!

Dr. Stockmann. The whole Bath establishment is a whited, poisoned sepulchre, I tell you—the gravest possible danger to the public health! All the nastiness up at Molledal, all that stinking

filth, is infecting the water in the conduit-pipes leading to the reservoir; and the same cursed, filthy poison oozes out on the shore too——

Last year we had some very strange cases of illness among the visitors—typhoid cases, and cases of gastric fever——

Dr. Stockmann (showing him the letter). Here it is! It proves the presence of decomposing organic matter in the water—it is full of in-fusoria. The water is absolutely dangerous to use, either internally or externally.

Dr. Stockmann. What is there for him to say? I should think he would be very glad that such an important truth has been brought to light. Hovstad. Will you let me print a short note about your discovery in the Messenger? Dr. Stockmann. I shall be very much obliged if you will. Hovstad. It is very desirable that the public should be informed of it without delay.

It is a splendid thing for a man to be able to feel that he has done a service to his native town and to his fellow-citizens. Hurrah, Katherine!

But, at the same time, Peter is so confoundedly afraid of anyone’s doing any service to the town except himself. Mrs. Stockmann. I will tell you what, Thomas—you should be good-natured, and share the credit of this with him. Couldn’t you make out that it was he who set you on the scent of this discovery? Dr. Stockmann. I am quite willing. If only I can get the thing set right. I——

Let me see, what was the story? Some kind of beast that had got into the water-pipes, wasn’t it? Dr. Stockmann. Infusoria—yes. Morten Kiil. And a lot of these beasts had got in, according to Petra—a tremendous lot. Dr. Stockmann. Certainly; hundreds of thousands of them, probably. Morten Kiil. But no one can see them—isn’t that so? Dr. Stockmann. Yes; you can’t see them. Morten Kiil (with a quiet chuckle). Damme—it’s the finest story I have ever heard!

Aslaksen. Yes, I think I may pride myself on that. And this matter of the water-supply is of the greatest importance to us small tradesmen. The Baths promise to be a regular gold-mine for the town. We shall all make our living out of them, especially those of us who are householders. That is why we will back up the project as strongly as possible. And as I am at present Chairman of the Householders’ Association——

Aslaksen. But not violently, I trust, Mr. Hovstad. Proceed with moderation, or you will do nothing with them. You may take my advice; I have gathered my experience in the school of life. Well, I must say good-bye, Doctor. You know now that we small tradesmen are at your back at all events, like a solid wall. You have the compact majority on your side, Doctor.

The idol of Authority must be shattered in this town. This gross and inexcusable blunder about the water-supply must be brought home to the mind of every municipal voter.

Peter Stockmann. As usual, you employ violent expressions in your report. You say, amongst other things, that what we offer visitors in our Baths is a permanent supply of poison.

Peter Stockmann. He smiled at what he considered to be my extravagance, naturally. Have you taken the trouble to consider what your proposed alterations would cost? According to the information I obtained, the expenses would probably mount up to fifteen or twenty thousand pounds. Dr. Stockmann. Would it cost so much? Peter Stockmann. Yes; and the worst part of it would be that the work would take at least two years.

Peter Stockmann. At least. And what are we to do with the Baths in the meantime? Close them? Indeed we should be obliged to. And do you suppose any one would come near the place after it had got about that the water was dangerous?

Peter Stockmann. The water-supply for the Baths is now an established fact, and in consequence must be treated as such. But probably the Committee, at its discretion, will not be disinclined to consider the question of how far it might be possible to introduce certain improvements consistent with a reasonable expenditure. Dr. Stockmann. And do you suppose that I will have anything to do with such a piece of trickery as that? Peter Stockmann. Trickery!! Dr. Stockmann. Yes, it would be a trick—a fraud, a lie, a downright crime towards the public, towards the whole community!

Peter Stockmann. And even if that were true? If I perhaps guard my reputation somewhat anxiously, it is in the interests of the town. Without moral authority I am powerless to direct public affairs as seems, to my judgment, to be best for the common good. And on that account—and for various other reasons, too—it appears to me to be a matter of importance that your report should not be delivered to the Committee. In the interests of the public, you must withhold it. Then, later on, I will raise the question and we will do our best, privately; but nothing of this unfortunate affair—not a single word of it—must come to the ears of the public. Dr. Stockmann. I am afraid you will not be able to prevent that now, my dear Peter.

Peter Stockmann. Oh, the public doesn’t require any new ideas. The public is best served by the good, old-established ideas it already has.

So it will be necessary for you to refute them publicly. Dr. Stockmann. I! How? I don’t understand. Peter Stockmann. What we shall expect is that, after making further investigations, you will come to the conclusion that the matter is not by any means as dangerous or as critical as you imagined in the first instance.

Peter Stockmann. As an officer under the Committee, you have no right to any individual opinion.

Dr. Stockmann. It is I who have the real good of the town at heart! I want to lay bare the defects that sooner or later must come to the light of day. I will show whether I love my native town. Peter Stockmann. You, who in your blind obstinacy want to cut off the most important source of the town’s welfare? Dr. Stockmann. The source is poisoned, man! Are you mad? We are making our living by retailing filth and corruption! The whole of our flourishing municipal life derives its sustenance from a lie! Peter Stockmann. All imagination—or something even worse. The man who can throw out such offensive insinuations about his native town must be an enemy of our community.

Mrs. Stockmann. But, dear Thomas, your brother has power on his side—— Dr. Stockmann. Yes, but I have right on mine, I tell you.

Mrs. Stockmann. Oh yes, right—right. What is the use of having right on your side if you have not got might?

Mrs. Stockmann. Yes, it is sinful to treat you so, it is perfectly true. But, good heavens, one has to put up with so much injustice in this world.—There are the boys, Thomas! Look at them! What is to become of them? Oh, no, no, you can never have the heart——.

Hovstad. Yes, you may be sure they will. And in this way the ring will be broken up, you see, and then in every issue of the paper we will enlighten the public on the Mayor’s incapability on one point and another, and make it clear that all the positions of trust in the town, the whole control of municipal affairs, ought to be put in the hands of the Liberals.

Billing. That is perfectly true! I see it coming—1 see it coming; we are on the threshold of a revolution!

What I am doing, I am doing in the name of truth and for the sake of my conscience.

Aslaksen. Yes, so long as he confines himself to this matter of the Baths. But if he goes farther afield, I don’t think it would be advisable to follow him.

Aslaksen. I am a man with a conscience, and that is the whole matter. If you attack the government, you don’t do the community any harm, anyway; those fellows pay no attention to attacks, you see—they go on just as they are, in spite of them. But local authorities are different; they can be turned out, and then perhaps you may get an ignorant lot into office who may do irreparable harm to the householders and everybody else.

Billing. Oughtn’t we to try and get rid of him, Hovstad? Hovstad. Do you know anyone else who will advance the money for our paper and printing bill?

Petra. You don’t understand me. The burden of this story is that there is a supernatural power that looks after the so-called good people in this world and makes everything happen for the best in their case—while all the so-called bad people are punished. Hovstad. Well, but that is all right. That is just what our readers want. Petra. And are you going to be the one to give it to them? For myself, I do not believe a word of it. You know quite well that things do not happen so in reality.

Unfortunately, that is an extremely difficult question to answer, Mr. Aslaksen. But what would you have us do? Do you suppose we shall have a single visitor in the town, if we go about proclaiming that our water is polluted, that we are living over a plague spot, that the entire town——

Aslaksen. Well then I must say it is absolutely unjustifiable of Dr. Stockmann—I beg your pardon, Mr. Mayor——

Aslaksen. No, Mr. Hovstad is not such a fool as to go and ruin his paper and himself for the sake of an imaginary grievance. Dr. Stockmann (looking round him). What does this mean? Hovstad. You have represented your case in a false light, Doctor, and therefore I am unable to give you my support.

Dr. Stokmann (puts his arms round her and kisses her). Thank you, my dear! Now you and I are going to try a fall, my fine gentlemen! I am going to see whether a pack of cowards can succeed in

gagging a patriot who wants to purify society!

The most dangerous enemy of truth and freedom amongst us is the compact majority—yes, the damned compact Liberal majority—that is it! Now you know!

The majority never has right on its side. Never, I say! That is one of these social lies against which an independent, intelligent man must wage war.

The majority has might on its side—unfortunately; but right it has not.

The common people are nothing more than the raw material of which a People is made.

broad-mindedness is almost precisely the same thing as morality.

You should never wear your best trousers when you go out to fight for freedom and truth.

A free man has no right to soil himself with filth; he has no right to behave in a way that would justify his spitting in his own face.

It is this, let me tell you—that the strongest man in the world is he who stands most alone.