Materials and Medicine: Trade, Conquest and Therapeutics in the Eighteenth Century

(Paperback)

Available Formats

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

Medicine was transformed in the eighteenth century. Aligning the trajectories of intellectual and material wealth, this book uncovers how medicine acquired a new materialism as well as new materials in the context of global commerce and warfare. Bringing together a wide range of sources, this book argues that the intellectual developments in European medicine were inextricably linked to histories of conquest, colonisation and the establishment of colonial institutions. This is the first book to trace the links between colonialism and medicine on such a geographical and conceptual scale. Chakrabarti examines the texts, plants, minerals, colonial hospitals, dispensatories and the works of surgeons, missionaries and travellers to demonstrate that these were shaped by the material constitution of eighteenth century European colonialism. This book will appeal to experts and students in histories of medicine, science, and imperialism as well as south Asian and Caribbean history. -- .

Reviews

Chakrabarti has produced a fascinating and highly readable book, full of unique information and detailed, thoughtful analysis. It will be a catalyst for new comparative research, and it is an essential text for students of colonial medicine, Enlightenment-era science, global trade, and imperialism, as well as specialists in Caribbean and South Asian history.

This thoughtful comparative study of the distinct medical experiences of India and the West Indies illuminates a wide range of intellectual and cultural changes. It is excellent news that Manchester University Press has now brought out a paperback edition.
James Robertson, University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaican Historical Review, Vol. 27

Author Bio

Pratik Chakrabarti is Wellcome Lecturer in the History of Modern Medicine at the University of Kent