Medieval Medicine

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Medieval medicine is more than the traditional thoughts of leeches and bloodletting; charms, plant remedies, shamans, priests, and a hint of supernatural are easily incorporated into describing the medicine of the time. Throughout this period of time, all of these elements combined together to create, what was then seen, as the most efficient way to heal someone. By studying how medicine was practiced, one can better understand the way the Medieval society worked in times of sickness.

Charms, at the most basic structure, tended to be written letters or symbols, sacrifices of animals, or gathered herbs or stones (Alonso 7). When the charms are in written form, Middle English is the language of choice; however, occasionally Latin will be used. The sentences are “syntactically complete and the contents are varied” (Alonso 6). For example, there is the use of headaches, nosebleeds, or astrological advice (Alonso 6). Since literary was not a common skill in the Middle Ages, the readers of these charms were restricted to a low number of people (Alonso 7). Even though many people could n...

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