Alan Cooke

The Mind of Mr. Soames

John Soames is a thirty-year-old man who has been in a coma since a brain injury during birth. Now revived, he shows the behaviour of a child and is monitored by two doctors attempting to find out if he can be rehabilitated into the adult world. One doctor, Maitland, is only interested in educational activities and he works John until he stops interacting and refuses to eat. Another doctor suggests play for its own sake would have benefits and he brings a bouncy ball into John's room. John is soon interacting again and eating once more. During all this time, John has met no women. Eventually, John is allowed outside into the natural world and he delights in it, drinking water from a pool by dipping his head in. Maitland finds out and returns John to his room. Again, John becomes distressed. The men talk to him a great deal but John has fewer words, and although he appears to understand, when he is told to wait six months until he goes outside again, he does not know how long that will be. John breaks free, having struck an orderly and knocked him out. John runs through woods until he reaches a river where he sleeps. The next day, he sees a busy road for the first time. A man stops his car thinking he is a hitch-hiker. The man chats whilst John is silent. John gets out, finds a pub and steals some food. A woman offers him a drink but John spits it out. A man comes to help the barmaid, saying he owes money. John runs away. He passes a playground and takes a ball off the children who are playing. He runs away once again and it gets dark. John steals a coat from a car parked outside someone's house. The owner shouts at him, John runs and is hit by a car. The couple stop and get him into their car. The woman wants to take him to a hospital but the man says they'll call the police (he has been drinking), so they drive John to their house. The woman puts him in the spare bedroom. The next day, the woman offers to clean him, and asks what he remembers. John says a few words and the woman thinks he is in shock. She suggests he was injured by a hit-and-run driver. John eats breakfast and the woman announces his name - she has seen a newspaper. She says he is wanted for attempted murder upon the orderly. She accepts that he was locked up by bad people. John touches her hair and she says she cannot recall the last time her husband was half as gentle. The police come to the house but John leaves. He manages to get a train ticket and uses money from the coat he has on. The doctors are still in pursuit. On the train, John talks very slowly to a nervous teenaged girl with his limited vocabulary. The girl drops her violin and as John goes to help her he puts his hand on hers and the girl screams repeatedly. The train stops, John runs away and the girl says to a guard that John tried to attack her. Eventually, the police use dogs to follow John across the countryside to a barn. The doctors arrive. Maitland threatens to 'get angry' if he doesn't come out. The other doctor, Bergen, says to be calm. He goes in and speaks to John and realises John has hurt his leg (falling from the train). Bergen offers medicine from his car and says he won't force John to go with him, it is John's decision. John asks him not to go and then follows him out into the rain. Meanwhile, two young people from the institute are watching from a car. The man's hand is poised over a switch. Suddenly, a bright light dazzles John and the dogs start barking. In panic, John spins round and round with the pitchfork he holds. He lets go and it spins out, hitting Bergen. John cries out and collapses. People step forward and place him on a stretcher. Bergen is in pain but alright. Bergen's assistant gets into the van beside John and says his name kindly. John, who looks traumatised, gradually turns to look at him and reaches out a hand. Bergen's assistant takes it. They drive away leaving Maitland standing in the rain until the two students drive over to pick him up.