In 1874, Thomas Eakins took a second course in anatomy at Jefferson Medical College. He attended conferences and surgical clinics chaired by Professor Samuel D. Gross. Eakins painted “The Gross Clinic” to show the emotion involved in medical procedures. It appears that the doctors performing the operation have emotionally withdrawn from the current situation. By distancing themselves from the emotional aspects of surgery, doctors can accomplish their task much more easily than they would have been able to if they had become emotionally attached to the patient. If doctors had been emotionally involved in the operation, they would have become more prone to making mistakes during the patient's operation because they would be thinking more about their feelings than the operation at hand. Although emotions are great and necessary things, sometimes it's best to try to suppress them. Another thing noticed by the viewer is the veiled woman crying next to the doctor. She is very involved in this operation, letting her emotions express themselves freely. This woman could be the patient's mother or siblings, and even though she knows the operation was necessary to save or improve her loved one's life, it's hard to watch her. By bringing emotions out into the open, as the woman did, it is easier to manage them. Keeping feelings bottled up inside can cause depression and emotional instability. This adds another layer of complexity to the surgery. Performing this task would require enough skill from the doctor, but mix emotion into the equation and the work, both mental and physical, is doubled. In the painting, Gross appears to experience a wide range of emotions. He interrupted his surgery and his lectures to think deeply about something. While he must keep his feelings in check, he must also be sincere for the sake of the patient's mother and the students in the surgical theater. The doctor's head is placed against a dark background, which makes it stand out. This creates a layer of division of emotions. This “layer of emotion” separates the spectators, who have no real intention other than to observe the conference, from the real participants involved in the operation. The characters in the foreground, whether they struggle to let go of them or choose to let them flow, are faced with some kind of feelings..