Shakespeare, self proclaimed poet and renowned playwright, lived in the age of the Renaissance. More specifically, the time at which the Tudor family ruled England, during these times, there were deep-rooted religious cleansings and ongoing witch hunts, that sought out anyone and everyone that did not follow suit. Shakespeare (1564-1616A.D.) was born in, and lived through the medical renaissance, which was the point between 1400 and 1700A.D. that innovated the medicines used in Europe. These treatments were eventually diffused throughout the world. The most typical consensus made by medical technicians of the time believed in the body to be maintained up by a balance of bodily humors (liquids), though during the mid 1500s new methods of treatment were introduced through experimentation, however, despite these advances made by the more wealthy, the more destitute population continued to receive traditional treatment.
During the Elizabethan age, it was widely conceded that a person’s temperament was decided by the state of their humors, which were sanguine, choler, phlegmatic, and melancholic. This belief in humors originates in the ancient Greek’s beliefs and medical foundations which were reinforced by philosophers Plato, Aristotle and Socrates among others. Each of these humors also relates to a substance from the body and a corresponding element, blood and air, yellow bile and fire, phlegm and water, black bile and earth respectively. Furthermore, these substances and humors responded to specific environments related to them. In short, the entire process breaks down as this: sanguine manifested itself in blood and the element of air and is maintained by hot and moist conditions. Choler was identified with yellow bile and the e...
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Mowrey, Daniel B. The Scientific Validation of Herbal Medicine. New Canaan, CT: Keats Pub., 1986. Print.
"No. 767: Medicine in New France." University of Houston. Web. 17 Feb. 2012. .
Penrose, Jane. An Encyclopedia of Tudor Medicine: [big Book]. Oxford: Heinemann Educational, 1998. Print.
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Mathews, Holly F. "Introduction: A Regional Approach and Multidisciplinary Persepctive." Herbal and Magical Medicine: Traditional Healing Today. Ed. James Kirkland, Holly F. Mathews, C. W. Sullivan, III, and Karen Baldwin. Durham: Duke UP, 1992. 1-13. Print.
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...
people there so that over England as a whole a fifth of the men, women
Furthermore, the basic knowledge all these doctors knew were: There are only four elements in the world,each element represented a humour, and all four humours are balanced in the human body. Humours are “natural bodily fluids. They correspond to the elements and have various qualities: cold, dry, hot, and moist.” (Ross) The four elements are: earth, air, water, and fire. The Humour for earth was black bile meaning melancholic or sad - black bile really is the foam off the top of blood. Air’s humour is blood meaning sanguine or lusty. Water’s humour may gross people out… it’s phlegm meaning phlegmatic or sluggish. Lastly fire’s humour is yellow bile meaning temperamental or angry - yellow bile is also choler (Ross). All four humours are supposed to be balance the cause of diseases were if one was out of balance (Alchin).
Professor comments: In this paper, the student synthesizes several sources about nineteenth-century medicine and medical education into a focused and coherent essay that provides information about aspects of this topic especially relevant to understanding Lydgate's position in Middlemarch: the differences among physicians, apothecaries, and surgeons, both in terms of training and duties on the one hand, social status on the other; the processes by which someone obtained a medical education and became a licensed practitioner; and the differences in English, Scottish, and French training. In doing so, the student displays an awareness of the importance of the contextual material for more than merely factual purposes, and she employs a principle of selection, concentrating on material that will facilitate her interpretation of Lydgate's role in the novel--especially in the connection between medical and political reform--in a separate essay.
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”). The doctors also believed in completely covering their body when treating a patient. It was thought that if they wore boots, gloves, masks and robes, then they would be protected from the diseases. They also wore an amulet around their waste, filled with dried blood and ground up toads (Alchin). Although this may seem out of the ordinary today, these precautions were something an Elizabethan doctor did not go
The Four Humours was one of the biggest Scientific belief in the Elizabethan era. Many didn’t know what to say about it. The theory of the humours is based on four elemental body fluids. The amounts of blood, yellow bile, phlegm, and black bile determined a person’s physical or mental health. The
Disease and death are most often associated with the Middle Ages because of the widespread plagues and ignorance of medical knowledge during that time period. It is difficult, however, to ascertain the true nature of illness in the early Medieval Ages because in some written sources, the author’s standpoint distorts the presentation of the disease or cause of a person’s death so that the biological cause is skewed and unattainable.
The longest running tradition in medicine, bloodletting, was a widely accepted practice with a three-thousand year-old history from the ancient Egyptians to the late 19th century. At that time, physicians thought that disease was a curse caused by the supernatural. It was a common idea that blood carried the vital force of the body and was the seat of the soul. Anything from body weaknesses to insanity were attributed to a defect in this vital fluid. Bloodletting was a method for balancing other fluids in the body and cleansing it of impurities. Shakespeare takes the same knowledge of blood and applies it to “Macbeth” in which the connotations not only foretell one’s glory but also one’s guilt.
The improvement of medicine over the course of the human successes gave great convenience to the people of today. Science has cured and prevented many illnesses from occurring and is on its way to cure some of the most dreadful and harmful illnesses. As the world modernizes due to the industrialization, so does the ways of medicine. Some cures are approached by chance, some, through intense, scientific measures.
Holistic Medicine, commonly referred to as “Alternative Medicine”, is a vast and rapidly growing new scientific field. It is derived mainly from ancient, traditional methods of healing that have often been practiced in the East for centuries. These include a variety of techniques from herbal healing to acupuncture to homeopathy to energy channeling. Due to the large number of methods that are covered by the term, there are various definitions of Holistic Medicine. However, all literature seems to agree that Alternative Medicine, is exactly what the name suggests: an ‘alternative’ approach to healing and medicine. It is a more personal move toward health care, which attempts to connect the mind, body and spirit.
Levine, L. E., & Munsch, J. (2011). Temperament. In L. E. Levine, & J. Munsch, Child Development: An active Approach (pp. 342-343). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publishers.
Health claims are booming in today’s world. Many of these consumers are being misled by advertising and believe that their choice will benefit their health. Although herbal medicines have been in existence throughout human evolution, I have chosen to take a deeper look into these health practices. I’m curious if this is just another health claim or if there are actual benefits to taking these medicines.
Temperaments are something we are all born with. They display personality traits like attitudes, personal values, and talents. We can not change our temperament. It is what makes us who we are. We should be thankful God has given us different temperaments. A temperament is the the combination of inborn traits that subconsciously affect man’s behavior. Each temperament has its strengths , challenges, Qualities, and shortcomings. The four temperaments are melancholy, Phlegmatic, choleric, and sanguine. The four temperaments were originated in ancient times. They were originally known as the four humors.
Frequently a person believes that herbal medicine is more naturally safe and soothing than drugs. Nevertheless, there’s no reasonable defense about this. Though many consumers trusted herbal medicine much more than the synthetic medicine because it’s safe and effective, but like anything else, it has its own limitations too. There are several hostile issues related to herbal medicine that has been quite alarming. Notwithstanding, majority of the most popular herbs are at least nearly safe.