Plague example essay topic

This horrible sickness known as the bubonic plague was first introduced during the early 1330's. The bubonic plague was a very dreadful, dangerous, and deadly disease that people suffered during the Middle Ages. This disease caused skins of the victims to turn into a dark black color, so it has also been known as "The Black Death". The symptoms were inflated around arm pits, neck, and groin. The word "bubonic" referred to "bubo", which was an enlarged lymphatic gland. Some even chocked on their own blood, because the pneumonic plague affected the lungs.

Many victims suffered with nausea, headaches, vomiting, aching joints, high fever, and were very ill from it. The most common form of the Black Death was this bubonic plague, and due to the disease being the most common, this sickness swept more than half of the people in Western Europe instantly. On October of 1347, numerous Italian merchant ships returned from the Black Sea. The Black Sea was one of most significant trade route between Europe and China.

"Since China was one of the busiest of the world's trading nations, it was only a matter of time before the outbreak of plague in China spread to western Asia and Europe" (Rice). When sailors went to Asia, they were not the only ones that went; rats traveled with them, carrying fleas that caused the plague. "Fleas living on the blood of infected rats then transferred the disease to the European people" (Dowling). Many of the sailors on the ships were already diagnosed with the plague and were dying from it. When they reached Sicily, the disease spread rapidly throughout the city and from the port cities to the nearby countryside. A person who witnessed this scene explained this: Realizing what a deadly disaster had come to them, the people quickly drove the Italians from their city.

But the disease remained, and soon death was everywhere. Fathers abandoned their sick sons. Lawyers refused to come and make out wills for the dying. Friars and nuns were left to care for the sick, and monasteries and convents were soon deserted, as they were stricken, too.

Bodies were left in empty houses, and there was no one to give them a Christian burial. (Rice) Even though many people drove the Italians from Sicily, the disease spread everywhere and killed everybody. The infection took away victims lives in less than one week. The plague was now everywhere and was much too difficult to stop. Many people were desperate for help and for an explanation.

People started blaming at insignificant things for the cause of the plague. While some said that the invisible particles carried in the wind started the bubonic plague, others said the plague started in poisoned wells. Many blamed the Jews, saying that it was their fault the disease spread. Different responses were going around, and many people were paranoid with how easily the plague could be transmitted from one person to another.

Families began to rip apart by setting against each other and tried to get away from the sickness. Law and order did not even exist in some areas because of the plague. Everybody was struggling only for their own survival. Dead bodies were dumped out in the streets or were piled up on top of each other. It was one of the most horrifying moments in history. Doctors did what they can to help but could not save a lot of the victims because it was irresistible.

They tried finding herbs and medicines that were made of gold and pearls to stop the sickness, but everything failed. People started seeing hopes when the winter season came. The bubonic plague seemed to disappear during the winter. "In winter the disease seemed to disappear, but only because fleas-which were now helping to carry it from person to person-are dormant then" (Rice). When spring came back again, people were attacked by the plague again and new victims died. One-third of Europe's people, 25 million died after five years.

Smaller occurrences took place after the worst was over, not for just couple years, but for centuries. Until the 1600's, the bubonic plague did not vanish. Even after the bubonic plague took place during the Middle Ages, the plague is common among rodents and still exists today. Now, doctors know how to cure victims with the bubonic plague, but people still living in isolated places die from this horrifying disease. This disease that was introduced during the 1330's was a very serious, dreadful, dangerous, and deadly disease that people suffered during the Middle Ages. In this day, there is cure for the plague; however, during the Middle Ages, surviving was a slim chance due to the shorter of advance medicines.

We should be very fortunate for what we have today..