Fiber, Medicine, and Culture in the British Enlightenment - 9781137580924

Before the discovery of the cell, the body was seen as composed of nothing but fibers. Fiber, Medicine, and Culture in the British Enlightenment is the first full account of the concept of fiber and fiber theory in eighteenth-century British medicine. It explores the pivotal role fiber played as a defining, underlying concept in anatomy, physiology, pathology, therapeutics, psychology, and the life sciences. With the gradual demise of ancient humoralism, the solid fibers appeared on the medical scene both as the basic building unit of the body and as the dynamic agent of life. As such, fiber stands at the heart of eighteenth-century medicine, both iatromechanism and iatro-vitalism. Touching on the cultural aspects of fiber, the Baroque, and the culture of sensibility, this book also challenges the widely held assumption that the eighteenth century was the age of the nerve and instead offers an alternative model of fiber.

• | Author: Hisao Ishizuka
• | Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• | Publication Date: Nov 18, 2016
• | Number of Pages: 300 pages
• | Language: English
• | Binding: Hardcover/Social Science
• | ISBN-10: 1137580925
• | ISBN-13: 9781137580924