PEOPLE RESPONSE TO THE BLACK DEATH
First hand account-Giovanni BoccaccioGiovanni Boccaccio was an Italian writer recorded his experiences in the book he wrote called 'The Decameron',
Boccaccio describes the fear of people and how it took a toll on them. They adopted a very cruel policy to abandon the sick and everything that belonged to them. By doing so they thought that they were safe from the plague. He also noted that the authority of humans and their religious laws virtually disappeared allowing every man and women to do as they pleased. |
The Break Down of Social Order
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People avoided others to secure their survival. Even relatives didn't visit each other in fear of catching the Plague. "Brother abandoned Brother". Most people just abandoned society and everything they owned. Parents left their own children to die for fear of getting the plague.
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Agnolo di Turo, Siena, 1348
"The bodies were sparsely covered that the dogs dragged them forth and devoured them . And believing it to be the end of the world, no one wept for the dead, for all expected to die."
"The bodies were sparsely covered that the dogs dragged them forth and devoured them . And believing it to be the end of the world, no one wept for the dead, for all expected to die."
The Flagellants and the Persecution of the Jew's and Lepers. |
People in the 14th century were afraid of the Plague and wanted some one or something to blame. The predominantly Christian community persecuted the minority Jewish religion as many people believed they were responsible for the crucifixion of Jesus and as a result God inflicted this disease onto everyone. They were an easy target being a minority.
There was also a belief that the Jews and the Lepers had conspired to poison the water wells throughout Europe. This belief segregated the Lepers further from the community. The Flagellants a group of religious fanatics believed that the only way to show God their pain was by self harming themselves (Flagellation). They would whip themselves in a painful manner causing injury in the hope of obtaining the forgiveness of God and ridding themselves of the plague. The Flagellant movement eventually died out as quickly as it started. |
THIS YOU TUBE" CLIP" BY HISTORY CHANNEL PROVIDES A VERY USEFUL SUMMARY OF THE PLAGUE INCLUDING, PEOPLES REACTIONS, SYMPTOMS AND POTENTIAL CURES.