The Bubonic plague was a disease that was most prevalent during the Renaissance. The Bubonic plague was such a horrible disease that it affected every part of life, but there was little that could be done for it.
Many people tried everything they could to cure it but nothing would work.
The Bubonic plague was one of the most horrible diseases ever. The plague was one that killed millions.
The Bubonic plague struck fear into those who had not yet fallen into its grips. It's estimated that as many as two million people were killed by the plague (Lee 179). Wilson describes the fear tremendous in his book The Black Death:
The Black Plague severely traumatized those who survived it, but records indicate that people resumed the business of living only to meet the next wave of the Plague, and then the next, striking one part of Europe or another every year for three centuries. (435)
It is said that 90% of the people infected with the disease were killed (home.nycap). The extreme number of people that died from the plague was the reason for the fear.
The plague was most certainly brought to Europe from Asia (Dols 41). The plague was never ending and still exists in the rodents of the region (41). The plague was most commonly caused by the bite of a flea. The fleas were infected with bacteria called Yersinia pestis (Center for Disease Control). The fleas were carried over on rats that were coming from Asia on ships and being let into Europe when the ship docked. The rats lived among the people because of the sanitation during this time was terrible. You could also get the plague from being in such close contact with the people infected with the plague. If the infected person coughed he or she would blow the bacteria into the air and you could breathe it in and become infected (CDC.gov). It being so easy to get infected was the reason for the amounts of death.
Seeing someone with the plague was a terrible sight to see. The symptoms were what made the body look horrific. The typical signs of the plague were a tender lymph gland, accompanied by tremendous pain. The swollen gland was called a “bubo” which is where the name comes from. The plague was suspected when someone had a swollen gland, chills, headache, and extreme exhaustion (CDC.gov). The plague was extremely painful to have been infected with.
There were many treatments tried to heal the infected but nothing would work. There was no known treatment for the plague all the people could do was suffer until they died because that was most likely your fate. Many doctors used their patients as test subjects to find cures but none were found.
Many people tried everything to keep the plague from spreading farther than it did. The officials of the countries threatened by the plague had to quarantine cities from ships and caravans. The officials did this because they wanted to limit the plague from spreading from the city it was occurring in.
The plague was very devastating to the economy. When the plague struck, Europe was working on the feudal system. The feudal system was where the peasants did the nobles jobs because the nobles wouldn't do their jobs themselves. When half of the population was wiped out the workers of the nobles died and it sent the country into turmoil. Everybody was affected economically just because the products couldn't get out for shipping (Out of the Middle Ages). The economic hardships made recovering from the plague much more difficult than it already was.
The plague was a terrible disease, but it is still occurring today as well. The plague today is not as bad as it once was because now there are treatments for it. Today you can take antibiotics to get rid of the disease (CDC.gov). If thought to be exposed to the plague than the treatment is to isolate the person and give them Prophylactic antibiotics (CDC.gov). The plague is also avoidable. The best ways to avoid the plague is environmental sanitation, education on how to prevent it and also preventive antibiotic therapy. There are no vaccines in the United States available (CDC.gov). It is also helpful to attempt to eliminate fleas that may be a carrier of the virus to help. The plague is not as harmful as it once was during the renaissance.
The plague is a disease that can be cured if caught early. The plague has about a 14% mortality rate of infected people compared to the 90% of infected people that died during the renaissance. In the United States many people don't get the plague but those who do are usually cured of it (cdc.gov).
The plague is in many parts of the world these days but has moved around in the past years. The plague is now mostly in Asia. In the Western United States animal plague is occurring and in the Eastern United States it is mostly in Humans. In some countries they are worried about the use of the plague as a weapon of mass destruction because it can be easily given to humans without their knowing (cdc.gov).
The plague is a horrible disease that is very deadly. The plague is a terrible thing that we live with. The Plague is a disease that affects everybody in every way if they have it. The plague during the renaissance was one of the worst times in history killing most of the people at one time. The disease killed almost everyone it touched. Hopefully it will never ever be repeated but unfortunately, it usually does.
