The Bubonic Plague

2 Pages 392 Words

The Bubonic Plague swept across Europe in 1348 killing millions. We now know that the disease spread by infected fleas that carried the bodies of bacteria. During the middle ages, people weren’t as educated as we are now and they blamed the plague on God, and used the Jewish as a scapegoat. This revealed much about their beliefs and knowledge.
People were highly influenced by God and the Church. In Document 1, Giovanni Bocaccio says, “It started in the east either through the influence of the stars or because God’s just anger…” People weren’t aware that bacteria caused these plagues. They believed that God was punishing them. Then in Document 4, Lisabetti Contenni says that when she fed her infected husband a piece of bread touched by the body of St. Domenica, all signs of the plague disappeared. This proved how they believed that everything was caused by a higher power. They believed that God had the power to cure and kill. They believed God controlled everything that happened. They never questioned anything. People were devoted to God, and church was an enormous part of the lives of medieval people.
In Document 2, Erasmus of Rotterdam says, “ The plague and sickness is due to the filth in the streets…” These people weren’t advanced in medicine. They weren’t aware of the real reasons of sickness. Then in Document 5 a French doctor, H. de Rochas explained that the “poison” of the plague was taken out using toads, whose venom should draw out the disease. This also showed us that their forms of medicine weren’t very effective. The people had been using methods of healing that weren’t radical.
These people’s beliefs about the plague, that it was caused by some higher power, and they’re medical beliefs portray them as a poorly advanced, religious society. If they thought so many people were wiped out because of God, they were very religious. The church controlled just about every a...