Retrieved from. The theory of the four humors underpinned European medicine and thinking on the innerworkings of the body until at least the 1700s. The influence of the humors changed with the seasons and times of day and with the human life span. In comedies, the characters learn from the ordeals they are put through, subsequently develop and are then more or less in humoral balance at the happy ending of the play. The four humors I have recently started reading up on Shakespeare as I have read and enjoyed romeo and juliet when i was in high school and I feel like my lack of knowledge of these famous works of literature is something that should be fixed, I recently finished A Midsummer Night's Dream, and now I am on Hamlet and I came across something I don't quite understand. Sickness was no longer the result of a mortal transgression but was the result of imbalances in the body from a variety of factors, including diet, social class, environmental cleanliness, and the state of ones mental health. Why does he suffer this rude knave now to knock him about the sconce with a dirty shovel, These humors represented different aspects of a human, connected to the four elements (wind, air, earth and fire) and the four seasons (spring, summer, fall and winter). A contemporary of Socrates (470BC - 399BC), mentioned in the writings of Plato (428BC - 348BC) and Aristotle (384BC - 322BC). It is fascinating to recognize that during Hippocrates lifetime in the 4th century. To Polonius and the other spies he is playful and contemptuous. King Henry IV is melancholic and despondent. The principles governing the 'microcosm' or 'lesser world' of the human body are drawn directly from the fundamental building blocks of the 'macrocosm' or 'greater world' within the sublunar sphere. Hippocrates believed the human body is home to four types of liquids which, if imbalanced in any way, could cause mental and physical health problems in the individual. provides an opportunity to more deeply understand the evolution of medicine throughout the history of humankind. the first skull he says: "It might be the pate of a politician . mock your grinning? Just as we now believe that mental illnesses may in part be due to an imbalance of chemicals in the brain, Elizabethan doctors similarly believed that certain personality traits stemmed . , the element of earth (cold and dry), although not easily translatable from ancient Greek texts, has a retentive and solidifying force on metabolism and bone building. Harry Hotspur is choleric, his anger motivating his actions; finally, Falstaff is phlegmatic and unwilling to act at all. . Not surprisingly, the four humours readily relate to qualities still understood by herbalists today: the four natural elements air (blood), water (phlegm), fire (yellow bile), and earth (black bile) as well as the four energetics hot, cold, dry, and moist. Early in the play we learn that the young prince has gone through some kind of recent transformation. Return the completed Four Humors in "Hamlet" and Dramatic Structure Review handouts from Class 1 to students. This Porter, R.(1997). The immortal gods were gradually replaced with scientific medical theories, including the four humours, all of which heavily relied on the power of plants (Porter, 1997). hbbd```b``{A$G9d"&"A qTI 9l!9$'``]`Jim10l0 w ), In the graveyard scene with the clowns Hamlet indulges freely in a grim and melancholy humor. What matters is that we understand history as the foundation of our modern practices and find the inspiration we need to understand the complexities of health. Although hes young, he still ticks all the boxes. Hamlet's Antic Disposition: Is Hamlet's Madness Real? Thus, to be an effective herbalist meant understanding imbalances in the context of a persons individual experience in their natural setting. Essentially, it posited that certain bodily fluids must remain in balance within an individual, and that an imbalance of these fluids could cause illness or other problems. It was the dominant medical theory of the Medieval period. InHenry IV, parts one and two, there are four main characters, one of each temperament. His works contains a lot of information on the contemporary medical practices of the time, but they also show the social history of medicine: how medicine formed a part of peoples lives and thoughts. The four humours were: phlegm blood yellow bile black bile If the humours stayed in balance then a person remained healthy, but if there was too much of one humour then illness occurred. Shakespeare belongs to you. However, everyone hasa natural excess of one of the humours, which is what makes us all look unique and behave differently. HUMORALISM ( ebb-e jlinusi/ebb-e yunni ), or Galenism, a medical philosophy that considers illness as an imbalance in the body's four elemental humors ( a-hr el ), which are identified as blood ( un, dam ), phlegm ( balam ), yellow bile ( afr ), and black bile ( sawd ). This is the humour of regeneration and is supported by herbs that are either cooling and drying to help regulate blood, such as agrimony (, ), or herbs that are warming and moistening to nourish and increase blood flow, such as linden (. Each one of them a symbol, carrying a message to the person she hands it to. Understanding the four humours that Hippocrates developed thousands of years ago. Though his troubles were sufficient and his task difficult enough to unbalance almost any mind, yet Hamlet retains from first to last a calm and firm grasp of the situation in both its complexity and its incongruity. Its like a teacher waved a magic wand and did the work for me. In some cases, humors were even associated with different zodiac signs. A Greek-English lexicon. Hippocrates, Galen & The Four Humours. He believed that a humoral imbalance could result in illness. Although the ancient Greeks are not commonly known today for their contributions to herbalism as compared to the ancient herbalists of India or China, they were greatly instrumental in establishing the practice of modern medicine. Instead of seeking cures from gods and goddesses, who were often blamed for illness and to whom the sick begged for forgiveness, people began focusing more on medicine, philosophy, and the natural sciences for greater understanding of how the body worked. These four humours, from the Greek word. , the element of water (cold and moist), includes all clear fluids of the body, such as mucus, plasma, and lymph. They should then have a quarter as much yellow bile as phlegm, and a quarter as much black bile as yellow bile. Quotations from Hamlet (with commentary) The four types of. In ancient Greece, the humoral theory was popular as an approach to medicine. The point of humoral theory was that it gave a reason for ailments not clearly understood. The four humors are black bile, yellow bile, phlegm, and blood. Similarly, Ophelia in Hamlet displays a melancholic temperament. On Unbeknownst to many, Hippocrates was also instrumental in developing the theory of the four humours: blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile. All rights reserved. the old fellow, making him say that "yonder cloud," first, is "like a camel," then, "like a weasel," and, finally, "like a whale." As Hippocrates said, Grief and fear, when lingering, provoke melancholia (Hippocrates, 185/1931). Badger, 1916. At the beginning of a play, the heroes and heroines all have an excess, in differing amounts, of one of the humours. The four main characters of the two plays each represent one of the four temperaments. The temperament is phlegmatic which is generally slow, sleepy, and unemotional, although when in balance, it ensures a sense of serenity and good judgment. The four humors. It dictated that the human body was made up of four substances that dictated a person's personality and could affect their health. Analysis: To be, or not to be (3.1.64-98) Herbs that support an imbalance in this humour include plants with bitter qualities, which cool and detoxify the body. The four humours were literally bodily fluids, but were associated with personality traits, which is why we still talk about someone being "good-humoured." Perfect physical and mental health would occur if the various humours were balanced, meaning that they were in the proper proportion in the body. Ideally, the balance of humors that people needed for ideal health, the theory suggested, reduced by three quarters for each humor. Hippocrates, like many ancient people, believed that health was determined by humoral balance. , the element of air (hot and moist), is the vital force of the body and the very essence of youth and health. Of the four humors of the body, blood was generally thought to be the most prevalent and the most important. . Lived on the island of Kos (Cos) and his . 185 BCE). They were relied upon to determine if one of the three current standard practices for balancing the body induce vomiting, diarrhea, or bloodletting was appropriate for an individual, using herbs as the foundation for supporting the body. It is this exuberant humor that reveals beyond doubt Hamlet's fundamental sanity. (V. ii. Plus, get practice tests, quizzes, and personalized coaching to help you Join us online, on the road, or in Washington, DC. Jones, Trans.). Humoral theory is a long-since debunked medical theory that was popular in many parts of the world for millennia. The exhibit uses materials from the historical collections of NLM to explore the prevailing belief of the . Please simply create an account before buying/booking any courses. Hamlet was written in the early 17th century around 1600 or 1601 and first performed in 1602. Hippocrates (460-370. Regarded by many as the father of Western (and some say Islamic) medicine. It referred to the four fluids thought to be present in the human body: blood, yellow bile, black bile, and phlegm. It is very likely that Shakespeare created these humoral parallels deliberately, as he would have been very familiar with the kinds of personalities and treatments delineated by humoral theory. Theres rue for you, and heres some for me. The humours would be commonly practiced for 2,500 years and would later be revived by Greek physician and philosopher Galen (130-210. Nor were they good company, like the self-indulgent and lazy phlegmatics. The amount of blood an individual had depended on their gender, age, diet, and health, as well as the time of year and other factors. The 4 humors corresponded in their natures to earth, air, fire, and waterthe 4 elements of which all matter was composed, according the Greek philosopher Empedocles, a contemporary of Hippocrates. Falstaffs phlegmatic temperament makes him gorge on sack (wine) and capons (castrated cockerel, fattened for eating) all night and sleep all day, which builds up more and more phlegm and makes him even more thick and self-indulgent. Humoral theory was a medical theory that was first developed by ancient civilizations. He changes his character by changing his way of life and transforms into a worthy successor. The Elder Hamlet: The Kingship of Hamlet's Father For instance, blood was associated with heat and wetness. After being refused by Ophelia, Polonius explains that Hamlet: Fell into a sadness, then into a fast, IT . Arikha, N. (2007). The temperament is sanguine, meaning optimistic even in challenging situations, as well as patient, balanced, and thoughtful. Shakespeare was too good a judge of character and of human nature to mingle such humor with madness. Herbs that support this imbalance include pungent, stimulating, and aromatic herbs, such fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum), bay laurel(Laurus nobilis),fir(Picea abies),thyme(Thymus vulgaris),and hyssop(Hyssopus officinalis) (Osborn, 2015). succeed. . Men were thought to be primarily hot and dry, while women were cold and wet. (Original work published 165-175 CE), Gill, N.S. In Europe, the theory remained widespread for centuries and still had its adherents as late as the 1800s. Create your account. It is fascinating to recognize that during Hippocrates lifetime in the 4th century BCE, a major cultural shift was taking place in ancient Greece. Choler was primarily associated with summer. . endstream endobj 110 0 obj <>>> endobj 111 0 obj <. Playful and contemptuous is fascinating to recognize that during Hippocrates lifetime in the early 17th century 1600! Seasons and times of day and with the human life span and Galen. 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