The bedside manner of Eugene Vodolazkin’s Laurus

I am still not entirely sure what I think of Eugene Vodolazkin’s highly praised “Laurus” but was struck by this early passage;

 

The defining trait of the person under discussion is that he spoke very little. He remembered the words of Arsenius the Great: I have often regretted the things I have said, but I have never regretted my silence. Most often he looked wordlessly at the patient. He might say only, your body will still serve you. Or, your body has become unsuitable, prepare to leave it; know that this shell is imperfect.