Ancient Greek and Roman Medicine

Introduction to Greek and Roman medicine in its intellectual and cultural context. Examination of construction of concepts such as health, disease, physician, man, woman, cause, and difference. Readings from Greek literature and healing in cult of Asclepius. Readings of texts from Hippocratic collection, thought to be close to practice and theory of 5th-century BCE Greek physician, relating them to medical practice, competition for students and patients, intellectual display, developing scientific methods, ethnography, and Greek philosophy. Discussion of plagues as attempts to view such outbreaks as social phenomena. Examination of how Hippocratic understanding of how—or whether—we can know about what happens inside body was developed and challenged in 3rd-century BCE Alexandria. Study of Prince of Physicians, Galen, champion of Hippocratic medicine, influential into 18th century.

P/NP or letter grading.