Death Be Not Proud Summary

In John Gunther’s recount of his son’s life, Death Be Not Proud, Gunther begins by explaining Johnny’s early years. He tells of how intelligent his son was and that his wish was to do good in the world, as well as his childhood shyness. He lists off Johnny’s qualities, them being: his humor, charm, brains, selflessness, and considerate to a fault. Johnny loved physics, music, chemistry, and above all, living. All of this came crashing down when a neurologist, observing only his stiff neck at the school infirmary, called Johnny’s father to say that he believed that Johnny had a brain tumor. His father and mother raced to see him, and it is here that his father knew that his son is going to die. Johnny is then taken through a series of tests to try and uncover more of his illness, at this point his cheek and left eye had begun to droop. As many tests as Johnny had to endure, there not so much as a peep after his first operation. A spinal tap showed that there was immense pressure in the skull, especially close to the optic nerve. Because of the growth of the tumor exerting pressure on the brain, the foreign body had to be removed and a hole opened in

Thus, his start with X-ray therapy every morning from June 1st to the 20th. The treatment made Johnny weak and worried that he would become blind, which is common for brain tumor patients. And even after the X-rays, the tumor still grew, and his eyesight had gotten worse. Then one night, the tumor had opened and began to leak puss. Johnny’s parents were told that he was going to die, until his mother found an article that stated that tumors could be shrunken by mustard gas. With nothing to lose, Johnny was given doses of mustard gas in the beginning of August. The first wave of shots revitalized Johnny, but by August 31st, his tumor opened again, and Johnny was not looking