The Origins of WWI Flashcards
What categories does Christopher Lawrence argue doctors of the 19thC fall into?
- Those who sought the benefits and the life of the gentry - the classicists
- Those who sought to make clinical medicine a science
Where could you find classic doctors?
All over the country but mostly in London where the Royal College of Physicians was based, as were the majority of the aristocracy whom they treated
Classic doctors favoured what over science?
Social class and status. Being a respectable gentleman
What “revisionist” attempts does S.E.D. Shortt reject?
Attempts to link early, experimental science with ideal, “real” science - rather, physicians sought to identify a connection with any sort of science to validate their work
What does Lawrence argue about scientific vocabulary?
That some physicians used it to suggest science was the foundation of medicine but did not apply it to clinical practice frequently. It was also used to protect gentlemanly physicians from the threat of new scientific doctors.
Did doctors trust applied science?
No, they distrusted applied science but believed in the rule-of-thumb method as only gentlemen were fully equipped to be doctors
Complete the quote: “remarkable continuity…”
“…in a rhetoric tradition.” - against the background of changing infrastructure
Why did clinical medicine threaten physicians?
Because if it were to be made a science, the discipline and patronage of general practitioners would be dismantled.
What did the Medical Act of 1858 achieve on the surface?
Professional Unity - but there was division between hospital consultants and general practitioners
Who were the “dirty minded BATS”?
Those who treated only royalty and the aristocracy - also members of the Royal College of Physicians - so-called by contemporaries
