Plague Pox And Pestilence

Covering some of humankind's most notorious diseases, this book describes, with individual examples, the changing historical relationships between humans and their diseases, many of which they have helped to create. Contemporary illustrations show how the diseases were perceived in the past.

Tells the history of diseases and epidemics and presents some information on efforts to fight them.

Tracing the history of infectious diseases from the Philistine plague of 11th century BCE to recent SARS and avian flu scares, this volume provides descriptions of more than 700 epidemics, listed alphabetically by location of the outbreak.

Plague examines history's most destructive pandemics including The Black Death (Bubonic Plague), The Great Plague of London, the 1918 Spanish Flu, HIV/AIDS and more. It uses a narrative structure to describe the causes, events and eventual cessation of each outbreak. It features case stories of those affected, the science behind each disease, the physical symptoms and effects, and the different approaches to stopping or eradicating the diseases. This is a highly topical book that addresses the outbreak of COVID-19. It offers a message of hope to those worried or affected by COVID-19. That is, that pandemics come and go, people have survived through them, and with each one our understanding of how to slow or stop them increases. The book features illustrations and etchings from the Middle Ages and photographs from pandemics later in history.

Plagues have afflicted humankind throughout its history. From the Black Death to Ebola, author Linda Jacobs Altman traces our battles against infectious disease. Despite medical advances, the fight against these diseases is far from over.

Humanity has always been struck by pestilence and pandemics, from the plagues of ancient Egypt to the pox that ravaged Europe in the Middle Ages, to Covid-19. People living through the crises have always recorded what they saw, what they felt, and what they did. Some presented sober facts laced with anecdote, while others produced emotional outpourings; moralists speculated on the origins of the horror, poets distilled the suffering. Doctors described how they were able to advance their understanding of disease and scientists how to cure it, while survivors and the families of victims gave the inside story of the nightmare that develops when a long-feared disease enters your home or your body. There was a time when to read accounts of the Plague in Wittenburg by Martin Luther or the Great Plague of 1665 by Samuel Pepys scenes of anguish and woe, empty streets, quarantined houses, closed businesses, overflowing graveyards, heroic doctors and nurses, quack remedies and charlatans was to enter a disturbing and unfamiliar world. Today, to read the same words is to be hit by a jolt of recognition and understanding. As well as causing a huge loss of life, the Covid pandemic has taught us a great deal about ourselves and the way we live, illuminating tensions at the heart of society. This collection of intimate and revelatory first-hand accounts of pandemics through the ages bears witness to despair, rage, the blackest of humour, heartbreak and hope. These voices hold up a mirror to our own experiences of, and responses to, the crisis today.

Describes the history of disease and infection from ancient times to the present.

"Epidemics and scourges through the ages"--Cover.

A wide-ranging and dramatic account of the Antonine plague, the mysterious disease that struck the Roman Empire at its pinnacle In the middle of the second century AD, Rome was at its prosperous and powerful apex. The emperor Marcus Aurelius reigned over a vast territory that stretched from Britain to Egypt. The Roman-made peace, or Pax Romana, seemed to be permanent. Then, apparently out of nowhere, a sudden sickness struck the legions and laid waste to cities, including Rome itself. This fast-spreading disease, now known as the Antonine plague, may have been history’s first pandemic. Soon after its arrival, the Empire began its downward trajectory toward decline and fall. In Pox Romana, historian Colin Elliott offers a comprehensive, wide-ranging account of this pivotal moment in Roman history. Did a single disease—its origins and diagnosis still a mystery—bring Rome to its knees? Carefully examining all the available evidence, Elliott shows that Rome’s problems were more insidious. Years before the pandemic, the thin veneer of Roman peace and prosperity had begun to crack: the economy was sluggish, the military found itself bogged down in the Balkans and the Middle East, food insecurity led to riots and mass migration, and persecution of Christians intensified. The pandemic exposed the crumbling foundations of a doomed Empire. Arguing that the disease was both cause and effect of Rome’s fall, Elliott describes the plague’s “preexisting conditions” (Rome’s multiple economic, social, and environmental susceptibilities); recounts the history of the outbreak itself through the experiences of physician, victim, and political operator; and explores postpandemic crises. The pandemic’s most transformative power, Elliott suggests, may have been its lingering presence as a threat both real and perceived.

Profiles of the bubonic plague, smallpox, and AIDS, outlining their history, spread, treatment, and impact. Includes woodcuts by David Frampton and an index.