Condrau, Flurin (Author)
Worboys, Michael (Author)
Social History of Medicine
Volume: 20
Pages: 147--158
In this article, we argue that this dominant picture of the Victorian experience of disease and death is mistaken, and it follows that the accepted notion of a modern epidemiological transition will need to be rethought. We make two main claims: first, national epidemic crises, either as natural or social events, were not that prevalent in the Victorian era; and secondly, that infectious diseases were never the `normal' cause of death, which we take to mean the most common or prevalent, which is at least partly due to the fact that the crucial category of `infectious diseases' is itself a historical construct. In demolishing these Shibboleths, we develop an alternative picture of death and disease in the century that points to: the importance and prevalence of local epidemics; the changing meanings of the term of infection; the need to look at morbidity as well as mortality; and the need to disaggregate mortality data by age, sex, place and other variables. We must make it clear that in no way do we want to be read as advocating the diminishing significance of epidemics and infections, or the suffering they caused, rather we simply want them to be seen in their proper perspective and in context.
...MoreArticle Noymer, Andrew; Jarosz, Beth (2008) Causes of Death in Nineteenth-Century New England: The Dominance of Infectious Disease. Social History of Medicine (p. 573).
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