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Battling Smallpox before Vaccination
Inoculation in Eighteenth-Century Germany
Series: - Clio Medica Online, Volume: 105
- Clio Medica, Volume: 105
Author:
When smallpox inoculation entered western medical practice in 1721 it aroused considerable controversy. A broad-based cohort of enlightened Germans such as publishers, poets, pastors and elite women attempted to dispel the doubts and encourage the innovative procedure. Yet many parents remained fearful, and the contagiousness of inoculation also necessitated a new approach. National pride in the past defeat of bubonic plague aroused optimism that smallpox could be banished using a similar strategy. The arrival in 1800 of Jennerâs vaccine ended the debates by offering yet another promising new approach.
Battling Smallpox before Vaccination explores the social and medical impacts of inoculation. It offers belated recognition for the valiant attempts of the many protagonists battling against the so-called âmurdering angelâ before Edward Jennerâs discovery of vaccination. It provides a comprehensive description and penetrating analysis of the understanding and perception of smallpox, the propagation of pro-inoculation information, varied reactions to inoculation, and debates over the idealistic goal of eradicating smallpox.
Battling Smallpox before Vaccination explores the social and medical impacts of inoculation. It offers belated recognition for the valiant attempts of the many protagonists battling against the so-called âmurdering angelâ before Edward Jennerâs discovery of vaccination. It provides a comprehensive description and penetrating analysis of the understanding and perception of smallpox, the propagation of pro-inoculation information, varied reactions to inoculation, and debates over the idealistic goal of eradicating smallpox.
Jennifer D. Penschow (PhD Med. 1994 Melbourne; PhD His. 2016 Tasmania) has one international patent and 39 peer-reviewed collaborative publications, including two articles in Nature, mainly with research teams at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, Melbourne, the Howard Florey Institute, Melbourne, and the Department of Biochemistry, University of Tasmania. At present she is an independent scholar.
"das Werk [bietet] einen angenehm lesbaren Ãberblick über die literarische Auseinandersetzung mit der Inokulation."
[the work offers a pleasant readable overview of the literary debate of inoculation].
- Elena Taddei (Innsbruck), Francia recensio 2022-3, DOI:https://doi.org/10.11588/frrec.2022.3.90529
[the work offers a pleasant readable overview of the literary debate of inoculation].
- Elena Taddei (Innsbruck), Francia recensio 2022-3, DOI:https://doi.org/10.11588/frrec.2022.3.90529
Authorâs Note and Acknowledgements
List of Figures
Abbreviations
Introduction
1 Realities, Myths, and Perceptions
â1 Reality and Mythology of Smallpox
â2 Inoculation Offers a New Approach
â3 Perceptions of a Benevolent âMurdering Angelâ
2 The Ruling Class and the Nobility
â1 Princes, and âTravelling Inoculatorsâ
â2 High-Ranking Mothers
â3 Successive Prussian Kingsâ Strategies
â4 The Rural Nobility
3 Academics and Medical Men
â1 University Medical Schools
â2 Physiki Lead the Way
â3 Social-Class Considerations â Doctors Versus Surgeons
4 The Discourse in the Print Media
â1 The Published Word Spreads News of the Innovation
â2 Intellectuals, Doctors, and the Public Have Their Say
â3 Regional Influences Come into Play
5 A Literary Focus on Women
â1 Changing Sentiments in Depictions of Disfigurement
â2 Poets and Writers Focus on Young Women
â3 Real and Fictional Women as Inoculation Promoters
â4 Women as Authors, and as Targets of Advice
6 Pastors and Peasants
â1 The Problem of Smallpox in Rural Areas
â2 Challenges for Country Pastors
â3 Inoculation Makes Inroads
7 To Inoculate, or Aim to Eradicate Smallpox
â1 Inoculation versus Containment Strategies
â2 Two Campaigns Aiming to Eradicate Smallpox
â3 Disputes over Prospects for Eradication
Conclusion
Appendix 1: German University Dissertations about Inoculation: 1720â1798
Appendix 2: Original German Publications about Inoculation: 1714â1800
Bibliography
Index
List of Figures
Abbreviations
Introduction
1 Realities, Myths, and Perceptions
â1 Reality and Mythology of Smallpox
â2 Inoculation Offers a New Approach
â3 Perceptions of a Benevolent âMurdering Angelâ
2 The Ruling Class and the Nobility
â1 Princes, and âTravelling Inoculatorsâ
â2 High-Ranking Mothers
â3 Successive Prussian Kingsâ Strategies
â4 The Rural Nobility
3 Academics and Medical Men
â1 University Medical Schools
â2 Physiki Lead the Way
â3 Social-Class Considerations â Doctors Versus Surgeons
4 The Discourse in the Print Media
â1 The Published Word Spreads News of the Innovation
â2 Intellectuals, Doctors, and the Public Have Their Say
â3 Regional Influences Come into Play
5 A Literary Focus on Women
â1 Changing Sentiments in Depictions of Disfigurement
â2 Poets and Writers Focus on Young Women
â3 Real and Fictional Women as Inoculation Promoters
â4 Women as Authors, and as Targets of Advice
6 Pastors and Peasants
â1 The Problem of Smallpox in Rural Areas
â2 Challenges for Country Pastors
â3 Inoculation Makes Inroads
7 To Inoculate, or Aim to Eradicate Smallpox
â1 Inoculation versus Containment Strategies
â2 Two Campaigns Aiming to Eradicate Smallpox
â3 Disputes over Prospects for Eradication
Conclusion
Appendix 1: German University Dissertations about Inoculation: 1720â1798
Appendix 2: Original German Publications about Inoculation: 1714â1800
Bibliography
Index
Historians of medicine and of eighteenth-century Germany and Europe, social historians, doctors interested in immunology and infectious diseases, advanced-level undergraduate students, post-graduate students, and perhaps general readers, medical research institutes, organisations marketing vaccines to resistant populations.