Cholera In The Ghost Map

1. The Europeans poured have poured something into the water which sterilized the water and killed the toxins that become disruptive in the digestive system when they are consumed. They Europeans may have poured what are called oral rehydration salts into the well, which quickly works are combatting the cholera, and will prevent further outbreaks from occurring.

The Black Death was devastating and was one of the most significant events in Medieval Britain. The Black Death was also known the plague and bubonic plague it describes the spread of disease that caused mass deaths throughout Britain. The disease itself was carried by fleas and spread across Europe between 1346-1353 leaving towns and city such as Siena Italy with 85% of the population wiped out. This was seen all over Europe including Britain and it can be argued economic factors was the most significant consequences of the Black Death. However there are many factors such as political, social factors and Mortality rates that were also results of the Black Death and perhaps social factors may be more significant.

The Black Death was one of the most life-changing pandemics in history. It was first discovered 550 years later in the 1800s by Alexandre Yersin, a french biologist. In his honor, the plague was named Yersinia Pestis. The plague traveled in two major ways. Yersin discovered that it traveled by infected fleas; the flea would attempt to feed on a human or animal and would then regurgitate the disease into the new host, further spreading the illness. Urban areas across Europe were populous with rats, which were one of the main hosts of the plague. These rodents spread the Black Death throughout cities in days. The unaffected still were not safe if they did not come in contact with an infected flea or rat. The plague also traveled pneumonically, or through the air. It caused large boils full of blood and pus, which would pop and spread. Another symptom was coughing, which was one of the many ways of proliferation. The disease eventually spread throughout Europe and killed a third of it’s population. It’s wrath caused many shortages, loss in hope, riots, and even some good things, such as many changes in art, science, and education. Therefore, the Black Death was one of the most life-changing pandemics in history.

I chose to read The Ghost Map: The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic - and How it Changed Science, Cities and the Modern World. I found this book especially compelling because most people have never even heard of the cholera epidemic in London in 1854, nor its impacts on the cleanliness of today’s society. In his book, Stephen Johnson explained how in 1854, everyone living in London thought that all disease was spread through foul-smelling air (miasma). John Snow, a local doctor in London, wanted to know why so many people were dying of cholera, and others were not. He was the one that originally discovered that the epidemic was surrounded around a water pump on Broad Street, and Henry Whitehead was the one who proved that he right

Bristol was believed to be the first city that the black death had reached in England, which helped create the spread of the disease because it was an important port and city during the medieval time. London was known as a crowded, busy city, with poor hygiene and living conditions, that were said to be dirty and disgusting. The River Thames carried more ships and infection to London which spread to the rest of England. The academic journal titled “The Bubonic Plague” written by Kristina Lenz, (obtained in the Nassau community college library) stated that “The disease could also have been brought into the country by Danish merchants

Although most disease struck the poorest, the upper class was not fully immune. Because people wanted to move to cities to make their lives better, they were forced to live around these diseases without proper means for prevention, protection, and recovery. Once contracting the disease, they would either die within hours or suffer from uncontrollable diarrhea and pain. In addition, scientific knowledge on disease was not as developed as it fortunately is today. Doctors had not yet learned the concept of a germ theory and instead associated the disease with the “bad air” that surrounded toxic, polluted cities. This “bad air” was known as miasa and was incorrectly used to explain the spread of cholera in major cities during the mid 1800s. After studies and research, doctors noticed that there was a heavy concentration of miasmata near certain rivers, but they still connected it to a lack of air quality in bustling cities such as Manchester, London, and Paris. Although air pollution and coal emissions did play a role in certain illnesses, they were not the main cause for diseases such as cholera. Poor ventilation, dirty homes, malnourishment, and no access to clean water made people easily susceptible to a ruthless disease like cholera. Moreover, causes of cholera were investigated more thoroughly after John Snow’s theory claimed that cholera was spread through the water John Snow was an English physician who is today considered one of the fathers of modern epidemiology, the branch of medicine that deals with the distribution and control of diseases relating to health. Finally, doctors could see cholera in a new light and were able to find better means of protection and prevention for its victims. Today, doctors recognize the germ theory of disease which states that some diseases are caused by microorganisms, and not just by “bad

The Black Death “By all accounts, the Black Death spread from France in the summer of 1348 to the port of Weymouth on the southern coast of England, from whence it travelled very rapidly to other ports in both directions along the coast. It progressed up through the Bristol Channel to Bristol before advancing along the Severn to Gloucester. From here it spread inland towards the east along the main routes to London, but also north and northwest, eventually invading Wales. Simultaneously, as proved by research, the infection spread along the Thames from east to west to reach London towards the end of 1348." (Pg.58,Lenz, Kristina)

The mortality rate of the Black Death was horrendous. It is estimated in various parts of Europe at two-thirds to three-quarters of the population. In England it was even higher during the first wave. Some countries were less seriously affected. Shrewsbury, the author of ‘History of Bubonic Plague in

The Great Plague is one of the most talked about epidemics that London has ever faced. Almost anyone with a general idea of immunology or the history of western medicine will be able to identify the Great Plague of the 17th century as a major killer in the Stuart Period of London. However, the same person may not be aware of the crisis that occurred in Victorian London: cholera like every epidemic that has proceeded attempted to decimate the population. Cholera, a disease where severe dehydration along with the build of toxins in the gut, kills you in the matter of two days, without intravenously administered fluids death was all but certain. The Ghost Map, a historiographical novel written by Steven Johnson, tries to bring more awareness

This book offers a wide variety of information on the Black Death. Focused on the initial outbreak of the plague,

This narrative took place in London, summer of 1854. London was a city on the rise at the time and it they had a rapid spread of cholera disease. In eight days, over a tenth of

The Ghost Map by Steven Johnson discusses the issues with the Victorian era and how they led to the cholera epidemic and greatly influenced science and today’s modern world. Underneath the central message of understanding that horrible week of the cholera epidemic as one that defined today’s world of invention of modern life lies three themes that helped Steven Johnson shape The Ghost Map. The three themes being sewage systems, medicine, and epidemiology.

The spring and summer of 1665 brought an outbreak of the Bubonic Plague that spread through all the parishes of London leaving tens of thousands of its citizens dead. Large pits where dug to pile the dead bodies in, and they were full. St. Giles-in-the-Fields, one of the worst slums located just outside of the city, was the first parish to see the effects of this outbreak in the spring of 1665. Little attention was payed to the parish at first, as it was known to be unhealthy and poor. As the spring turned into summer, the death rate began to rise

The Black Plague, also known as the Black Death, started in southern Europe around 1348. Within three years, the Plague swept throughout Europe, killing many people. The main bullet that public officials had to shoot at the Plague was isolation, the complete separation from others. An infected person was isolated for a period of fourteen days, although the quarantine time was gradually increased to forty days. Disturbed by the effect that the Black Plague had, public officials created a sanitary system to battle contagious diseases. They used observation stations, isolation hospitals, and disinfection procedures. Pure water supplies, garbage and sewage disposal, and food inspections were started to improve sanitation. These efforts were especially

I decided to read The Ghost Map, by Steven Johnson, for my reading assignment. I originally chose this book, because I was interested in viral and bacterial outbreaks in general. I soon realized that the outbreak itself was not the central theme of the book. The author’s message was the making of the idea of large scale metropolitan living as a sustainable concept; unlike past failures, like Rome's collapse. He was able to prove how scientific thinking made that concept a reality.