The correct answer is B. Surgeon
He was a medical student and even worked at a hospital for a while at the beginning of his career.
The theme of the oval portrait is Fatal love, the wife in the story loves an artist but he loves his art. so by the time he was done it happened that she had died by his side.
I have never read what you are asking, but just by looking at it, I would assume that he is stereotyping Dutch people, because he is calling Black Dog an insult, which is "son of a dutchman".