Maladies and medicine : exploring health and healing, 1540-1740 / Jennifer Evans and Sara Read.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Evans, Jennifer, 1984- author.

Read, Sara, 1969- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Medical personnel--Great Britain--History.

Medical personnel.

Medicine--Great Britain--History.

Medicine.

Public health--Great Britain--History.

Public health.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (225 pages) : illustrations

Place of Publication:

South Yorkshire, [England] : Pen and Sword History, 2017.

Summary:

A lively account of medical practices in early modern England: "Superb... an essential piece of social history." - Books Monthly It was an era when tooth cavities were thought to be caused by tiny worms and smallpox by an inflammation of the blood, and cures ranged from herbal potions, cooling cordials, blistering the skin, and of course letting blood. Maladies and Medicine tells the story of how the body was understood before the major advances of modern medicine, covering the theory of the four humors and the ways that male and female bodies were conceptualized. It also explains the hierarchy of healers, from university-trained physicians to the women who traveled the country offering cures based on inherited knowledge of homemade remedies, as well as the print explosion of medical health guides, which began to appear in the sixteenth century, from more academic medical textbooks to cheap almanacs. In twenty chapters discussing attitudes toward, and explanations of, some of the most common diseases and medical conditions of the period, the book reveals the ways people understood them and the steps they took to get better. It examines the body from head to toe, from migraines to gout. Case studies and personal anecdotes taken from doctors' notes, personal journals, diaries, letters, and even court records show the reactions of individuals to their illnesses and treatments, bringing us into close proximity with people who lived roughly four centuries ago. This richly illustrated study will fascinate those curious about the history of the body and the way our ancestors lived.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (EBC, viewed April 11, 2018).

ISBN:

9781473875746

1473875749

9781473875739

1473875730

9781473875722

1473875722