But whenever my patient begins to count the carriages in her funeral procession I subtract 50 per cent from the curative power of medicines.
-- The Doctor

Importance: The doctor has just seen Johnsy, who has told him of her morbid fixation on the dying ivy vine and imminent death. As a man of science, the doctor has faith in the curative power of medicine, but expects his patients to be receptive to the treatment and their attitude fixed on getting better. Johnsy's delusional willingness to accept her death as inevitable any day angers the doctor for its stubborn irrationality, and leads to his exasperated judgments of Johnsy's priorities, values and life choices. The doctor's expression of futility at his patients' loss of the will to live suggests that it is a common occurrence, as well as foreshadowing Mr. Behrman's decision to risk his life for Johnsy.

A man?...Is a man worth - but...
-- Sue