Nate Fisher
Encyclopedia
Nathaniel Samuel "Nate" Fisher, Jr. is a fictional character
on the HBO television series Six Feet Under, played by Peter Krause
.
on Christmas Eve
only to learn that his father has died. Nate was born on January 8, 1965 (although in one episode his driver's license revealed he was a Libra
) to Nathaniel and Ruth Fisher in Los Angeles.
with his family. Nate had abandoned the family business years earlier. After graduating from Bonaventure High School and attending U.C. Santa Cruz
, Nate traveled through Europe and later settled in Washington State, where he managed the largest organic food co-op in Seattle. However, after his father dies, Nate delays returning to Seattle for a few days. He and David each inherit half of their father's business, Fisher & Sons, and Nate ends up sticking around to help run the business after he comes to realize that he has a natural gift for comforting grieving people. He and David initially clash because David is angry at him for leaving home and constantly points out the undertaking-related mistakes Nate is making, but they eventually mend fences and work well together. He also develops a relationship with Brenda Chenowith
that began as a random sexual encounter in an airport and slowly becomes something more.
In July 2001 (the end of the first season), Nate learns that he has arteriovenous malformation
(AVM), a potentially fatal brain condition which could cause him to have a seizure
or stroke
at any time, but thanks in large part to the doctor who has diagnosed him Nate decides to not have a risky surgical procedure, not least because the doctor says it doesn't usually have successful results. Nate has a very pronounced fear of death
, causing him to initially hide the information from everyone around him in order to avoid admitting his very real chance of dying young. Early in the season, he visits Seattle and seeks comfort from Lisa Kimmel, his lover during much of his time there. He ends up cheating on
Brenda with her, to whom he was then engaged, only adding to the subconscious pressure on him; worse, he has his first seizure while there. Additionally, several months after leaving Seattle, Lisa moves to Los Angeles and Nate learns that she is pregnant. Through the course of the season, however, Nate slowly becomes able to face his fear, and finally is able to tell his family about the condition and seek a high-risk surgical procedure as treatment for it (which his doctor falsely says could have been done safely in the first place); he is also able to tell Brenda about impregnating Lisa, but when it turns out that she had been cheating on him as well, they split up. The season ends on a cliffhanger, with Nate undergoing the high-risk surgical procedure required to save his life.
The opening scene of the third season is Nate going into temporary cardiac arrest, causing the season to begin on a surreal note, exploring various possible outcomes of Nate's surgery and his life. However, the series then skips ahead in time to late 2002, where it is revealed that Nate was revived by doctors and the procedure was successful, and Nate and Lisa have married; their daughter, Maya, is three months old. Their relationship, however, is tumultuous because Lisa doesn't trust Nate and he resents her controlling and joyless attitude, and just when things are beginning to look up for the couple, Lisa is reported missing and a month later her drowned corpse is found. Nate is forced to deal with both Lisa's death and being a single parent. Eventually he rekindles his relationship with Brenda and the two become engaged for a second time, marrying six months later in October 2004 (the beginning of the fifth and final season). Their wedding day, however, is darkened by Brenda's miscarriage
the previous day.
Brenda later becomes pregnant again, but she and Nate disagree on whether or not she should get an abortion
after blood tests show the baby may have special needs. This causes a rift in their relationship. Nate seeks friendship and solace in his stepsister Maggie, a Quaker
. Nate begins to attend Quaker Meetings and after Maggie requests that Nate give her a ride one evening, Nate ends up sleeping with Maggie.
Immediately afterwards, Nate suffers a brain hemorrhage from a second AVM that had developed since his mid-2002 surgery and slips into a brief coma
. He wakes up in the hospital the next day and the doctors believe he will have a healthy recovery over the next few weeks. Brenda tells him that she forgives him for his adultery
, but he responds by saying that he wants a divorce
. Brenda leaves his bedside devastated. Nate is also visited by David, Claire, Rico and Maggie, but Ruth can't be reached due to being away on a camping trip. At the end of the day, Nate unexpectedly dies in his hospital bed while David is sleeping at his side. Although he had arranged earlier in the series to have a female Rabbi conduct his funeral service, he ends up having a secular service at the funeral home and a "green funeral" where his untreated body is wrapped in a shroud and buried at a local park.
Following his death, the series spends the remaining few episodes on the other characters' lives as they attempt to cope with his absence. Nate appears several times to them as a representation of their own thoughts in a device that had been commonly used for many dead characters throughout the series to dramatically illustrate characters' internal monologue
s. When Ruth dies 20 years later, the last thing she sees is Nathaniel Sr. and Nate in her room helping her ease peacefully into death.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
on the HBO television series Six Feet Under, played by Peter Krause
Peter Krause
Peter William Krause is an American film and television actor and film producer. He is perhaps best known for his lead roles as Nate Fisher on Six Feet Under, Adam Braverman on Parenthood, and Casey McCall on Sports Night...
.
Prior to the Pilot
Nathaniel Samuel Fisher Jr. is the oldest of the three Fisher siblings, and arguably the main character of the series. The series begins when he returns to Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
on Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...
only to learn that his father has died. Nate was born on January 8, 1965 (although in one episode his driver's license revealed he was a Libra
Libra (astrology)
Libra is the seventh astrological sign in the Zodiac, originating from the constellation of Libra. In astrology, Libra is considered a "masculine", positive sign. It is also considered an air sign and is one of four cardinal signs...
) to Nathaniel and Ruth Fisher in Los Angeles.
During the series
When the series begins on Christmas Eve 2000, Nate is returning home from Seattle to celebrate ChristmasChristmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
with his family. Nate had abandoned the family business years earlier. After graduating from Bonaventure High School and attending U.C. Santa Cruz
University of California, Santa Cruz
The University of California, Santa Cruz, also known as UC Santa Cruz or UCSC, is a public, collegiate university; one of ten campuses in the University of California...
, Nate traveled through Europe and later settled in Washington State, where he managed the largest organic food co-op in Seattle. However, after his father dies, Nate delays returning to Seattle for a few days. He and David each inherit half of their father's business, Fisher & Sons, and Nate ends up sticking around to help run the business after he comes to realize that he has a natural gift for comforting grieving people. He and David initially clash because David is angry at him for leaving home and constantly points out the undertaking-related mistakes Nate is making, but they eventually mend fences and work well together. He also develops a relationship with Brenda Chenowith
Brenda Chenowith
Brenda Chenowith is a fictional character on the HBO television series Six Feet Under played by Rachel Griffiths. She was first introduced in the pilot, and remained until the series finale.-Prior to the Pilot:...
that began as a random sexual encounter in an airport and slowly becomes something more.
In July 2001 (the end of the first season), Nate learns that he has arteriovenous malformation
Arteriovenous malformation
Arteriovenous malformation or AVM is an abnormal connection between veins and arteries, usually congenital. This pathology is widely known because of its occurrence in the central nervous system, but can appear in any location. An arteriovenous malformation is a vascular anomaly. It is a...
(AVM), a potentially fatal brain condition which could cause him to have a seizure
Seizure
An epileptic seizure, occasionally referred to as a fit, is defined as a transient symptom of "abnormal excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain". The outward effect can be as dramatic as a wild thrashing movement or as mild as a brief loss of awareness...
or stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
at any time, but thanks in large part to the doctor who has diagnosed him Nate decides to not have a risky surgical procedure, not least because the doctor says it doesn't usually have successful results. Nate has a very pronounced fear of death
Necrophobia
Necrophobia is the abnormal fear of dead things as well as things associated with death . Necrophobia is derived from Greek nekros for "corpse" and -phob- from the Greek phobos for "fear".With all types of emotions, obsession with death becomes evident in both fascination and...
, causing him to initially hide the information from everyone around him in order to avoid admitting his very real chance of dying young. Early in the season, he visits Seattle and seeks comfort from Lisa Kimmel, his lover during much of his time there. He ends up cheating on
Infidelity
In many intimate relationships in many cultures there is usually an express or implied expectation of exclusivity, especially in sexual matters. Infidelity most commonly refers to a breach of the expectation of sexual exclusivity.Infidelity can occur in relation to physical intimacy and/or...
Brenda with her, to whom he was then engaged, only adding to the subconscious pressure on him; worse, he has his first seizure while there. Additionally, several months after leaving Seattle, Lisa moves to Los Angeles and Nate learns that she is pregnant. Through the course of the season, however, Nate slowly becomes able to face his fear, and finally is able to tell his family about the condition and seek a high-risk surgical procedure as treatment for it (which his doctor falsely says could have been done safely in the first place); he is also able to tell Brenda about impregnating Lisa, but when it turns out that she had been cheating on him as well, they split up. The season ends on a cliffhanger, with Nate undergoing the high-risk surgical procedure required to save his life.
The opening scene of the third season is Nate going into temporary cardiac arrest, causing the season to begin on a surreal note, exploring various possible outcomes of Nate's surgery and his life. However, the series then skips ahead in time to late 2002, where it is revealed that Nate was revived by doctors and the procedure was successful, and Nate and Lisa have married; their daughter, Maya, is three months old. Their relationship, however, is tumultuous because Lisa doesn't trust Nate and he resents her controlling and joyless attitude, and just when things are beginning to look up for the couple, Lisa is reported missing and a month later her drowned corpse is found. Nate is forced to deal with both Lisa's death and being a single parent. Eventually he rekindles his relationship with Brenda and the two become engaged for a second time, marrying six months later in October 2004 (the beginning of the fifth and final season). Their wedding day, however, is darkened by Brenda's miscarriage
Miscarriage
Miscarriage or spontaneous abortion is the spontaneous end of a pregnancy at a stage where the embryo or fetus is incapable of surviving independently, generally defined in humans at prior to 20 weeks of gestation...
the previous day.
Brenda later becomes pregnant again, but she and Nate disagree on whether or not she should get an abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
after blood tests show the baby may have special needs. This causes a rift in their relationship. Nate seeks friendship and solace in his stepsister Maggie, a Quaker
Religious Society of Friends
The Religious Society of Friends, or Friends Church, is a Christian movement which stresses the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Members are known as Friends, or popularly as Quakers. It is made of independent organisations, which have split from one another due to doctrinal differences...
. Nate begins to attend Quaker Meetings and after Maggie requests that Nate give her a ride one evening, Nate ends up sleeping with Maggie.
Immediately afterwards, Nate suffers a brain hemorrhage from a second AVM that had developed since his mid-2002 surgery and slips into a brief coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
. He wakes up in the hospital the next day and the doctors believe he will have a healthy recovery over the next few weeks. Brenda tells him that she forgives him for his adultery
Adultery
Adultery is sexual infidelity to one's spouse, and is a form of extramarital sex. It originally referred only to sex between a woman who was married and a person other than her spouse. Even in cases of separation from one's spouse, an extramarital affair is still considered adultery.Adultery is...
, but he responds by saying that he wants a divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
. Brenda leaves his bedside devastated. Nate is also visited by David, Claire, Rico and Maggie, but Ruth can't be reached due to being away on a camping trip. At the end of the day, Nate unexpectedly dies in his hospital bed while David is sleeping at his side. Although he had arranged earlier in the series to have a female Rabbi conduct his funeral service, he ends up having a secular service at the funeral home and a "green funeral" where his untreated body is wrapped in a shroud and buried at a local park.
Following his death, the series spends the remaining few episodes on the other characters' lives as they attempt to cope with his absence. Nate appears several times to them as a representation of their own thoughts in a device that had been commonly used for many dead characters throughout the series to dramatically illustrate characters' internal monologue
Internal monologue
Internal monologue, also known as inner voice, internal speech, or verbal stream of consciousness is thinking in words. It also refers to the semi-constant internal monologue one has with oneself at a conscious or semi-conscious level....
s. When Ruth dies 20 years later, the last thing she sees is Nathaniel Sr. and Nate in her room helping her ease peacefully into death.