The Doctor’s vignette in Chaucer's prologue to The Canterbury Tales, is a satire of the medical profession during the Middle Ages in that it is corrupt and not trustworthy.
The Doctor is initially described as someone who has an abundance of knowledge about medicine, since “no one alive could talk as well as he did on points of medicine and surgery,” (p. 16). He is established as being more even more credible through a list of famous thinkers and scientists that he “was well versed in,” (p. 17). Medicine at this time was based on studies done by other scientists and so it would be appropriate for him to be well-versed in those studies. However, medicine was very rudimentary during this era. Common treatments included bleeding and leeches, which hypothetically would drain the illness from the patient’s system. These would not work since there were no blood transfusions, so patients would be very weak and could possibly
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The doctor would prescribe medicine for his patients and send them to an apothecary, whom he was working with. “All his apothecaries in a tribe were ready with the drugs he would prescribe and each made money from the other’s guile,” (p. 17). The Doctor would prescribe medicine that may not have been needed, just to make money. The patient would buy the medicine from an apothecary and the apothecary would give a cut to the doctor in return for the business. It is said at the end of the tale that the Doctor “therefore had a special love for gold,” (p. 17). He may have known everything there is to know about medicine, but that was just to build credibility so that his patients would trust him. He is a prime example of the corruption of the medical practice, since he rips off his patients in order to get gold. This happens on top of the already untruthfulness of medicine of the day, since most remedies just made the patient worse instead of
Works Cited Ross, Maggi “Science and Health” Elizabethan.org/. N.p. 26 Mar 2008 Web 17 Jan 2014 Alchin, Linda. “Elizabethan Medicine and Illnesses” www.elizabethan-era.org. UK. The. N. P. 16
The medicine men seem to be taking extreme advantage of the people he is supposed to be taking care of. They seem to be out for more selfish pursuits as opposed to really sincerely helping the people. I could not believe that the sick had to give gifts before they could be “helped” and after they were “helped.” The fact that they experienced immense...
The quality of doctors during the Renaissance was a small step up from the Medieval era. There were a few medical schools that had started and doctors were beginning to have the option of a formal education. The only problem was that people didn't need a license to be a doctor. Many "quacks" practiced medicine. And doctors had no specialization; there were no dentists, no surgeons, and no physicians. So a doctor may have not known anything about one of those areas but still attempted to treat it.
Medicine in the Elizabethan Era was associated with many sciences. One of these includes Astrology. It was believed that all living creatures were associated with the stars. It was possible to read a persons past, present and future by the positions of the stars and planets. Therefore, if you were to go to a physician, one of the first things he would ask you wa...
Unlike today, the Ancient Roman doctors received no respect, because they were considered to be fraudilant. This reputation was caused by the doctors magical tricks, and the lack of useful treatments. The job required minimal training, as they only had to apprentice with their senior. Thus, many free slaves and people who had failed at everything else filled this profession. Some did try to find new remedies; however, others used medicine to con people. Public surgeries were done to attract audiences as an advertisement. Doctors would even become beauticians providing perfumes, cosmetics, and even hairdressing. When wives wanted their husbands gone, they would say, ¡§put the patient out of his misery¡¨ and the doctors would be the murderers. However, as wars began to break out, there were improvements bec...
Many people didn’t believe in medicine at all. The most commonly used treatment was prayer. Ordinary people relied on methods their parents and grandparents used, such as lucky charms, magic spells and herbal cures. Some of the herbal cures were quite useful.
Doctors believed the human body was part of the universe, so they used elements for each humour, “Yellow bile was the equivalent of fire. Phlegm was the equivalent of water. Black bile was the equivalent of earth and blood was the equivalent of air”(“Shakespearean and Elizabethan Medicine”). Also, because of their beliefs and lack of knowledge on serious medical conditions, most severe cases were not treated accurately. Some doctors believed if a person broke a bone, then it was never supposed to be used again because the accident was based from many sins of the soul (“Shakespearean and Elizabethan Medicine”).
Hippocrates used his knowledge of natural healing to help many people recover from what ails them in an attempt to; also, learn more of people’s sicknesses. Hippocrates once thoroughly examined the king of Macedonia, who was very sick at the time, and aided him in “recovering from tuberculosis”- which he did recover from (World Biography, 4).
As the story begins, the unnamed doctor is introduced as one who appears to be strictly professional. “Aas often, in such cases, they weren’t telling me more than they had to, it was up to me to tell them; that’s why they were spending three dollars on me.” (par. 3) The doctor leaves the first impression that he is one that keeps his attention about the job and nothing out of the ordinary besides stating his impressions on the mother, father and the patient, Mathilda. Though he does manage to note that Mathilda has a fever. The doctor takes what he considers a “trial shot” and “point of departure” by inquiring what he suspects is a sore throat (par. 6). This point in the story, nothing remains out of the ordinary or questionable about the doctor’s methods, until the story further develops.
Direct Characterization:Doctor of physicsHe was very into astronomy.He kept his patient from being depressed by horoscope and magic.He could sense the fortune that'll arrive in his sick patients dwelling. He was a very good physician.He knew the cause of every sickness. His patient pays him in gold. He read a lot of medical books written by the famous physicians such as Esculapius, Deiscorides, Hippocrates and Hali' etc. He was careful about his diet; never ate a bite more than he should yet he ate healthily.He read buy little in the Bible.He dressed in blue and scarlet. He is careful with his money.He kept the gold he gained and loved it more than anything else.Indirect Characterization:He is well respected in the society since he is a doctor.He might be a descendant of one of the well-known physicians.He studied a lot about medicine and its causes. It said that he knew the cause of very malady, were it of hot or cold'.He probably isn't a Christian, at least not a devoted one. He cures his patients not from his good-will, but because the gold he'll receive later.He enjoys reading books written about medicine, or anything that has to do with his field. He seems to be fastidious, and wary man.He's fairly rich (This is portrayed through his attire) yet not very generous, maybe even a bit stingy.The Social ClassDoctors, throughout the century has been considered the higher-class people, the more nobles ones. It was the same during the Medieval Period. They were regarded as the high-class, the well educated. Doctors and physicians alike were very influential, especially when knowledge about medicine weren't as perceived as now. People around look up to them and go to them for help.
The characters in The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer are all very similar because the narrator likes to highlight the best image of each character. However, taking a closer look at what is said, it is clear that the characters have some major differences too. Two characters in the story that have both some similarities and differences is the Doctor and the Miller. The Doctor and the Miller are very different, in my ways. Including their social status and the way they dress.
An interesting aspect of the famous literary work, "The Canterbury Tales," is the contrast of realistic and exaggerated qualities that Chaucer entitles to each of his characters. When viewed more closely, one can determine whether each of the characters is convincing or questionable based on their personalities. This essay will analyze the characteristics and personalities of the Knight, Squire, Monk, Plowman, Miller, and Parson of Chaucer's tale.
To begin with, the physician's tale starts off with a knight surnamed Virginius. He was an honorable knight who was also a caring father. He had one daughter. This girl was a virgin and had the perfect traits a man would want in a girl. She was prudent, bountiful, and staid. Her beauty and her kindliness would attract men. But one day she went into town towards the temple. At the town, there was a judge named Appius, in charge of the city. The judge laid his eyes on this girl and wanted her badly as he thought, "I'll have that girl whether I sink or swim!" So therefore he planned out a nasty strategy to have this girl. He hired a very deceitful blackguard who was living in the town. The blackguard was not allowed to tell anyone about this trick otherwise he and the judge would be severely punished. The day had come where the judge was going to execute his plan. This was a huge conspiracy ...
Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales has many characters Harry Bailey also known as the Host is one of them. His job upon many is to organize the storytelling challenge for the Pilgrims with the winner to have a meal at his Inn. His character is also considered to be inspired by Aristotle’s notion of place. The Host is a natural born leader which is shown by his actions, and his words. The Host has the most unique role in the story. When he initiates the storytelling challenge it is in a democratic way. Throughout the storytelling the Host helps out the Pilgrims. As the stories continue the Host becomes more emphasized during his confrontation with the Pardoner. The Host also continues his roles as the stories are winding down.
Hippocrates was a Greek physician that left a legacy that existed during his lifetime in Classical Greece and continues today. His moral and ethical standards were the foundation of his teachings, along with his meticulous writings concerning the study of the human body. He firmly believed that poor health and disease were the result of a natural process that could be discovered and cured through careful clinical reasoning and observations. Hippocrates travelled throughout Greece teaching and describing disease symptoms, and taught doctors how to analyze and treat specific illnesses or diseases. Hippocrates’s accomplishments give him the respect from doctors and medical professionals around the world that continues even today.