Description
About the Author
R.S. Bray was a Fellow of the Institute of Biology, an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Protozoologists and the British Society of Parasitology, and former Vice-President of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.
Reviews
"A very pleasant surprise. Bray is both judicious and modest in his approach ... and displays a genuine historical sense ... What distinguishes it from many other offerings is the author's willingness to acknowledge how difficult it is to diagnose diseases in the past ... The discussion of plague is particularly interesting in the latter respect and could be read to advantage by anyone interested in the question of its dramatic appearance and equally mysterious disappearance ... The question of what impact disease had on politics and society in the past is notoriously beset with traps for the unwary, and here too Bray displays a commendable caution ... Can be recommended to the interested layman and - with its useful bibliography - to first year undergraduates." Medical History "... this demonstration of Bray's eclectic scholarship is particularly opportune ... while the intention is to alert historians to the effect of disease on history, the account is equally relevant to planners of the future ... in language which should not inhibit the most science-blind reader. The work of each of the historians or other commentators is critically dissected and analysed ... An astonishing variety of authors has been covered; indeed, the bibliography makes almost as interesting reading as the text itself. Innumerable little snippets ... add a touch of levity here and there. This fascinating, though at times gruesome account ... provides innumerable topics for ... debate, and is essential reading for budding historians of whatever branch or period. In addition, it is a readable, thorough account of the history of pestilence appropriate for those with more general interests." Annals of Tropical Medicine & Parasitology
Book Information
ISBN 9780718895600
Author R.S. Bray
Format Paperback
Page Count 271
Imprint Lutterworth Press
Publisher James Clarke & Co Ltd