The Black Plague’s Impact on Medical Knowledge

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Better Living Conditions
Expansion of Medical Knowledge
Conclusion
Works Cited

Introduction

Infectious diseases have been a significant challenge to human evolution for ages. One of the deadliest mortality events in the world’s recorded history was called the Black Death (1347-1352). The infection was caused by a bacteria called Yersinia Pestis (McGowen 13). The disease was brought by Italian Merchants unknowingly to Europe and claimed the lives of 30-50% of the population (McGowen 13). The name “Black Death” was given to the disease following the horror and dread caused by the disease. In 1347, when the sailors infected with the disease harbored at Messina: “In their bones, they bore so virulent a disease that a mortal illness seized anyone who only spoke to them and in no manner could evade death” (Senker 19). People even feared to talk to those who had been infected with the disease. The severe depopulation from the disease positively impacted the socio-economical feudal system of that time. This research will evaluate the impact of the plague on Europe, mainly focusing on socio-economic and medical knowledge.

Better Living Conditions

Before the plague happened, all the land was owned by the king. He would then distribute it to his nobles, who had serfs, to make them work on it and share the profit with the king. The serfs working on the land earned food and lodging. During this period, Europe was overpopulated, and therefore, there were many serfs to worked on the land from the time they could walk until their death (Jedwab et al. 2). The serfs were like slaves because there was no upward mobility in the feudal system. They had to work and were tied to their land from generation to generation. Due to the plague, which claimed many people’s lives, significant depopulation caused a reduction in the number of serfs. The nobles had a hard time as without the serfs; they could not feed their families and pay the king, who gave the survivors a chance to negotiate better working terms. Many lives of the serfs improved significantly, and they could afford clothes, luxury items, and other commodities. This shows that the plague positively impacted the living conditions of the low-class people in Europe.

Expansion of Medical Knowledge

The plague also heavily affected the medical knowledge and practice used during those times. The doctors primarily depended on the work of Aristotle, Roman physician Galen, and Hippocrates, mostly written in Arabic. “The weakness of medieval science was its theoretical and bookish orientation, which emphasized the authority of accepted authors” (McGowen 62) Most of the doctors and caregivers died while giving traditional treatment to the patients. People would die or heal without a reason, which gave the doctors a hard time finding the right cure (Glatter and Finkelman 179). The doctors had to review their previous practice of considering former knowledge without adapting to changes. The death of many theorists, scribes, and translators led to the introduction of new works written in vernacular language. This allowed other people to read medical texts and expanded medical knowledge, which had a positive impact.

Conclusion

The Black Death was a serious plague that claimed the lives of many people. However, despite its negative consequences, it had a positive impact too. The plague helped many serfs improve their lifestyles and work in better conditions. In addition, the plague led to the revolution of medical knowledge, whereby scholars started writing texts in the vernacular to allow broad knowledge diffusion. Therefore, the plague positively impacted the socio-economic and medical knowledge across Europe.

Works Cited

Glatter, Kathryn A., and Paul Finkelman. “History of the Plague: An Ancient Pandemic for the Age of COVID-19.” The American Journal of Medicine, vol. 134, no. 2, 2021, pp. 176–181.

Jedwab, Remi, et al. “The Economic Impact of the Black Death.” SSRN Electronic Journal, 2020, pp. 1-51.

McGowen, Tom. The Black Death. F. Watts, 1995.

Senker, Cath. The Black Death 1347-1350: The Plague Spreads Across Europe. Raintree, 2007.

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The Black Plague’s Impact on Medical Knowledge

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