# Dr. Dorrimore — Can Such Things Be? character guide

> Dr. Dorrimore in Can Such Things Be? by Ambrose Bierce.

**Role:** minor

**Also known as:** Dorrimore

**First appearance:** 0011-a-diagnosis-of-death

## Who they are

A doctor who investigates a mysterious death and encounters the supernatural.

## In the story

### [A Diagnosis of Death](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters/a-diagnosis-of-death)

Referred to as Dr. Frayley in the text; the physician friend who listens to Hawver's story and reveals Mannering's death.

### [Staley Fleming's Hallucination](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters/staley-fleming-s-hallucination)

The physician called to treat Fleming; identifies the dog as belonging to the late Atwell Barton.

### [II: When You Have Lost Your Life Consult a Physician](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters/ii-when-you-have-lost-your-life-consult-a-physician)

Dr. Stilling Malson, the physician who encounters the lieutenant and questions him about his condition.

### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters/i)

Encountered by the narrator on the road; his presence causes unease and a sense of spiritual peril.

### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters/ii)

Introduced as a mysterious and cynical man from Calcutta; performs a disturbing illusion of his own death.

### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters/iii)

Confined to his rooms due to illness; introduced to Miss Corray and her mother; the narrator grows jealous of his attentions to Miss Corray.

### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters/iv)

Appears in the cemetery with Margaret Corray; later disappears after the narrator's attack.

### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters/v)

Professor Valentine Dorrimore, the hypnotist mentioned in a newspaper article, whose methods and claims about prolonged hypnosis are highlighted.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_such_things_be_se/characters/dr_dorrimore
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_such_things_be_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_such_things_be_se/characters