Controversy Surrounding the Symptoms of The Black Death

1058 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: introduction of the black death

Black Death is a descriptive term used to describe the initial outbreak and spread of bubonic plague in Europe, the Levant and North Africa between 1347 and 1352. Recurrent outbreaks of the plague were experienced in Europe over the next four centuries following the initial epidemic. The far reaching social and economic consequences of the epidemics have made Black Death the worst disaster in human history. However, the lack of advanced medical technology and accurate diagnosis during the period has led to controversies regarding the epidemic. There has been general consensus that the actual disease was caused by Yersinia pestis; this is because there is similarity between the bacterium and the symptoms shown in the records. On the contrary, studies have indicated the possibility of a combination of other disease in creating the epidemic. Studies have indicated that Yersinia pestis is better adapted to survive in tropical and subtropical environments and, consequently, would not thrive in the climate experienced in Europe during the time of the epidemic. This paper examines the controversies surrounding the symptoms of Black Death in Europe during the medieval period. To achieve this, the paper has been organized into three sections: the first and second section examine the biological description of both Black Death and Anthrax. Detailed description of signs, symptoms and the general morphology of the diseases are presented. The last section examines different alternative theories to the Plague theory.

Morphology and Symptoms of Black Death
There were three types of plague (all caused by Yersinia pestis): bubonic, pneumonic and septicaemic (Gotfried 9). The three types of plague have salient differences in their symptoms, spread...

... middle of paper ...

...he rodents, the rodents become a reservoir that habours the disease in between periods of outbreaks in human populations. It is noted that the flea, being hardy, could survive over a year without a host following the uncommon death of a rodent host. It is also observed that the flea was a fur flea as opposed to nest flea; meaning that it could survive in the furs of rats as well as clothing and textiles during trade movements.
It is noted that the fleas preferred cats as their secondary hosts. In the event of the death of the rodents, the fleas would depend on the secondary hosts for their survival. Many of the secondary hosts can tolerate small amounts of the bacillus in their blood streams and continue living as a host. Excessive multiplication in the system of the secondary host may cause death of the host; this precedes movement to humans as the tertiary host.

Show More
Related

  • The Black Plague and Its Impact on Medicine in Medieval Society

    768 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Black Death (also called the "plague" or the "pestilence", the bacteria that causes it is Yersinia Pestis) was a devastating pandemic causing the death of over one-third of Europe's population in its major wave of 1348-1349. Yersinia Pestis had two major strains: the first, the Bubonic form, was carried by fleas on rodents and caused swelling of the lymph nodes, or "buboes", and lesions under the skin, with a fifty-percent mortality rate; the second, the pneumonic form, was airborne after the bacteria had mutated and caused fluids to build up in the lungs and other areas, causing suffocation and a seventy-percent mortality rate.

    Read More

  • Ring around the Rosie: Turning Points in History

    1001 Words  | 3 Pages

    Kohn, George Childs. "Black Death." Encyclopedia of Plague and Pestilence: From Ancient Times to the Present, Third Edition. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2008. Ancient and Medieval History Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?

    Read More

  • Bubonic Plague DBQ

    669 Words  | 2 Pages

    One of the largest epidemic events in history, the Bubonic Plague had a devastating effect on European society. It is believed to have begun in China, and it reached European soil in 1347, when it struck Constantinople (Document 1). It was carried by infected fleas that spread the disease between humans and rats. A symptom of the plague was the development of large, dark swellings called “buboes” on the victim’s lymph nodes. By the time the plague left, Europe’s population had been reduced by almost half. The devastation as a result of the plague may seem shocking, but there were several important factors that contributed to its deadliness.

    Read More

  • A Plague: The Black Death, By Rosemary Horrox

    1314 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Black Death is one of the deadliest epidemics to ever hit mankind. It is estimated that this epidemic killed nearly 30%-60% of the population depending on the location. Recently, scholars have argued over the existence of the Black Death as a Plague in the form of Yersinia Pestis. Many argue, through scientific research and primary sources, that the Black Death was indeed a plague. Their critics argue that there is not enough evidence in the correlation of the scientific research and the primary sources to conclude that the Black Death was really a plague. The primary source The Black Death, by Rosemary Horrox, is a compilation of different accounts of the plague throughout Europe in the 1300’s. The two modern sources Plague Historians

    Read More

  • Bubonic Plague Dbq

    1820 Words  | 4 Pages

    The disease was caused by a bacteria called Yersinia Pestis which was carried by fleas that lived on the black rats. These rodents helped spread the plague. The diseases spread one of two ways. The first was through human contact and the second was through the air, people were infected with the disease just by inhaling it. The symptoms and characteristics of the disease included fever, fatigue, muscle aches and the formation of buboes which is swollen lymph nodes. These buboes were usually found under the arm, on the neck or in the groin area. It is caused by internal bleeding which eventually forms black spots or boils under the skin (which is why it is called the black death). Death usually followed shortly after these symptoms

    Read More

  • Medieval Outlook on the Bubonic Plague

    1446 Words  | 3 Pages

    European society did not understand the disease?partly because the plague itself changed form?and thus strove to find a cure. Two main types of plague predominated in the time of the Black Death?the bubonic and the pneumonic. Both types of diseases are caused by the bacteria Yersinia pestis but vary in methods of transmission . Although the bubonic plague is not contagious and can o...

    Read More

  • Comparing the AIDS Epidemic and The Plague

    694 Words  | 2 Pages

    Today the world is plagued with a similar deadly disease. The AIDS epidemic continues to be incurable. In an essay written by David Herlihy, entitled 'Bubonic Plague: Historical Epidemiology and the Medical Problems,' the historic bubonic plague is compared with

    Read More

  • The Spread of Disease In the New World

    1820 Words  | 4 Pages

    Disease and parasitism play a pervasive role in all life. Many of these diseases start with microparasites, which are characterized by their ability to reproduce directly within an individual host. They are also characterized by their small size, short duration of infection, and the production of an immune response in infected and recovered individuals. Microparasites which damage hosts in the course of their association are recognized as pathogens. The level of the interaction and the extent of the resultant damage depends on both the virulence of the pathogen, as well as the host defenses. If the pathogen can overcome the host defenses, the host will be damaged and may not survive. If on the other hand the host defenses overcome the pathogen, the microparasite may fail to establish itself within the host and die.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of The Black Death

    1821 Words  | 4 Pages

    No other epidemic reaches the level of the Black Death which took place from 1348 to 1350. The epidemic, better regarded as a pandemic, shook Europe, Asia, and North Africa; therefore it deems as the one of the most devastating events in world history. In The Black Death: The Great Mortality of 1348-1350, John Aberth, compiles primary sources in order to examine the origins and outcomes of this deadly disease. The author, a history professor and associate academic dean at Vermont’s Castleton State College, specializes in medieval history and the Black Death. He wrote the book in order to provide multiple perspectives of the plague’s impact. Primarily, pathogens started the whole phenomenon; however, geological, economic, and social conditions

    Read More

  • The Historical and Cultural Aspects in The Plague

    1305 Words  | 3 Pages

    Lapaire, Pierre J. "The Plague: Overview." Reference Guide to World Literature. Ed. Lesley Henderson. 2nd ed. New York: St. James Press, 1995. Literature Resource Center. Web. 24 Mar. 2011.

    Read More

  • The Black Death

    2054 Words  | 5 Pages

    In the beginning, the Italian town of Genoa was one of the busiest ports in Europe. Ships sailed from there to trade all over the Mediterranean Sea. In October of 1347, 12 merchant ships sailed from Caffa to Italy. A strange disease had infected the crew of these ships. Dying bodies lay aboard the ships. City officials, afraid that the disease might spread, issued an order that no person or piece of merchandise was to leave the ships. They even forbade medical treatment for the sick sailors and passengers. The disease still spread. The officials had not considered that the rats from the ships were able to leave the ships by crawling along the ropes that were tied to the ships. From Italy, the disease spread all over Europe, traveling along the major trade routes. The rats were responsible for carrying the disease, which was transmitted by fleas from infected rats. The fleas drank the rats' blood that carried the bacteria. The bacteria multiplied in the flea's gut. While the fleas gut was clogged with bacteria, the flea bit the human and regurgitated blood into the wound.

    Read More

  • Economic Impact Of The Black Plague

    943 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Bubonic Plague, or more commonly known as ‘The Black Death’ or ‘The Black Plague,’ was one of the most devastating and deadliest pandemics that humans have ever witnessed in the history of mankind. The disease spanned two continents in just a few years, marking every country between Western Europe all the way to China. During the reign of the plague, which is estimated to be the years between 1347-1352, it is estimated that “20 million people in Europe–almost one-third of the continent’s population” was killed off due to the plague. The Black Plague would change the course of European history since the plague knew no boundaries and inflicted its wrath upon the rich and the poor alike. As a result, not only did the plague have a devastating demographic impact which encountered a massive social disruption, but also, an economic and religious impact as well.

    Read More

  • The Disease Of Guinea Worm

    1526 Words  | 4 Pages

    This disease may be on the brink of being eradicated entirely but that doesn’t stop it from being one of the grossest things that anyone has ever seen. The parasite enters the body via unsafe drinking water. When people drink water infected with water fleas that have have been hosting the larvae of the parasite. There are no symptoms, to begin with, but about one year later, blisters on the feet or legs begin to develop and then the adult fully developed worm crawls out of the host body over a period of a few weeks. It’s said that the pain is intense and can incapacitate a person for weeks at a time. The pain can also continue for months after the infection. The parasite needs to infect a person at least once a year in order to continue. There were an estimated 3.5 million cases in 1986 but the disease has been greatly reduced over time and only 22 cases were reported in 2015. This disease will probably be the first parasitic disease to be completely eradicated in humans.

    Read More

  • The Hundred Years War

    2098 Words  | 5 Pages

    horrible disease was spread by infected rats and fleas and killed 1/4 to 1/3 of the

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On The Black Death

    1003 Words  | 3 Pages

    It was a bubonic plague that came from Asia and spread by black rats infested with fleas. The plague spread like a wildfire because people who lived in high populated areas were living very close to each other and had no idea what was the cause of the disease or how to cure it. The signs of the “inevitable death” where blood from the nose, fever, aching and swellings big as an “apple” in the groin or under the armpits. From there the disease spread through the body in different directions and soon after it changed into black spots that appeared on the arms and thighs. Due to the lack of medical knowledge, no doctors manage to find a remedy. Furthermore a large number of people without any kind of medical experience tried to help the sick but most of them failed “...there was now a multitude both of men and of women who practiced without having received the slightest tincture of medical science - and, being in ignorance of its source, failed to apply the proper remedies…” (Boccaccio). The plague was so deadly that it was enough for a person to get infected by only touching the close of the

    Read More

More about Controversy Surrounding the Symptoms of The Black Death

Open Document