What Makes Someone Great

An excerpt from "House MD" (Season 1, Episode 9: DNR). Dr. Foreman, after being offered a job by Dr. Hamilton from L.A., discusses with his boss Dr. House.

HOUSE
I checked him out. He’s a great doctor. You think he’s better than I am?

FOREMAN
This about your ego?

HOUSE
Answer the question. It’s not going to change my opinion of myself. Might affect my opinion of you, but that shouldn’t affect your opinion of yourself. Now I’m getting confused. If you think he’s a better doctor than I am, then you should take the job. Otherwise, you should get him to buy you two or three more nostalgic lunches and politely decline.

FOREMAN
It’s that simple? I should just ignore the mockery and abuse?

HOUSE
Oh, how do I abuse you?

FOREMAN
How do you not? If I make a mistake –

HOUSE
I hold you accountable, so what?

FOREMAN
Dr. Hamilton forgives. He’s capable of moving on.

HOUSE
That is not what he does!

FOREMAN
I screwed up his case, he told me –

HOUSE
He never said you were forgiven. I was there, he said it wasn’t your fault.

FOREMAN
So?

HOUSE
So, it was. You took a chance, you did something great. You were wrong, but it was still great. You should feel great that it was great. You should feel like crap that it was wrong. That’s the difference between him and me. He thinks you do your job, and what will be, will be. I think that what I do and what you do matters. He sleeps better at night. He shouldn’t.