Materials and medicine: Trade, conquest and therapeutics in the eighteenth century (Studies in Imperialism, 84) - Softcover

Chakrabarti, Pratik

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0719096545 ISBN 13: 9780719096549

Publisher: Manchester University Press, 2014

Synopsis

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.

About this title

About the Author:

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

Review:

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

About this edition

• Publisher: Manchester University Press
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 0719096545
• ISBN 13: 9780719096549
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 272