Description
Book Synopsis.
Trade ReviewAberth's book will be a useful guide for a new generation of students, born after AIDS cocktails made that disease more or less controllable in the mid-1990s and who are now grappling for the first time with what pandemics do to societies Whether upcoming generations adopt the "silver linings" optimism about pandemics Aberth espouses here remains to be seen. But Oxford University Press has served them well in providing this affordable and comprehensive volume. * Monica H. Green, Speculum *
Aberth's clearly written book isâhighly recommended. * J.P. Byrne, emeritus, Belmont University, CHOICE *
John Aberth is absolutely right that it is time for a new volume on this topic, and he seems to cover all the bases here. The prose is simultaneously expert and crystal-clear * a pleasure to read. Aberth moves easily from the historical to the scientific and back and forth between complex historiographical models in a way that even new undergraduates should be able to grasp.Jennifer Kolpacoff Deane, University of Minnesota, Morris *
I love Alberth's approach to history; he covers social aspects, cultural aspects, and critical interpretation. Aberth is very good at walking students through his thinking; they will really learn about historical argument construction and the use of source evidence by reading his book. * Michael Sizer, Maryland Institute College of Art *
Table of ContentsList of Figures List of Images List of Maps List of Tables About the Author Acknowledgments Preface. What was the Black Death? The Evolution and Epidemiology of Plague The Three Pandemics of Plague Paleomicrobiology Identifies the Black Death as Plague 1. "It Began in the Land of Darkness": The Geographical Origin and Spread of the Second Pandemic Where Did the Black Death Begin? How Did the Black Death Spread? Mapping the Black Death 2. Bring Out Your Dead! How Many People Died during the Great Mortality? How the Black Death Raised the Mortality Ante Plague Mortality, 1347-1353 Plague Mortality, 1353-c.1500 Why Did the Black Death End? Was the Black Death Indiscriminate? The Personal Side of Plague Mortality 3. Doctoring the Black Death: The Medical Response to Plague Causes Signs Prevention Cure The Verdict on Medieval Medicine 4. What Goes Around Comes Around: Environmental Aspects of the Black Death Environmental Causes and Signs of Plague Fear of Stenches Environmental Factors Affecting Plague Vectors: Climate Environmental Factors Affecting Plague Hosts: Rats and Housing 5. "Al Shal [Not] Be Wel": The Religious Response to the Great Mortality Spirituality and Piety in the Wake of the Plague Islam's Response to the Black Death The Problem of Post-Plague Parish Poverty Towards a Reformation? 6. "To Yow Myn Hand is Rawght to this Daunce": The Artistic Impact of the Black Death Painted Depictions of Plague The Plague Saints The Macabre or Memento Mori Physical Impacts of Plague 7. The "Red Knights of Christ": The Flagellant Movement The Flagellant Itinerary The Flagellant Ritual Perspectives on the Flagellants The Flagellants' Suppression 18. "They Processed to the Flames Dancing, Singing, and Weeping": The Artificial Poison Conspiracy First Stirrings in Southern France The Conspiracy in Catalonia The Poisoned Springs of the Savoy The Great Massacres of the Kingdom of Germany The Persecuted and Their Persecutors Aftermath of the Conspiracy 9. When Brothers Abandoned Brothers: The Social Impacts of the Black Death Fear of Being Abandoned Fear of Being Forgotten Fear of Being Unshriven Plague and the Poor 10. The Peasants are Revolting! The New Realities of the Plague Economy The Plague Economy Was There Economic Recovery After the Black Death? A Golden Age of the Laborer? The Decline of Serfdom The Peasant Land Market A Time of Transition? Epilogue. Could the Black Death Happen Again (and Would We Want It To)? Lessons to be Learned in the Modern World Appendix: The Plague Denial Controversy Bibliography
