Shift In Attitude To Womens Equality example essay topic

a) Whilst women werent trained in medicine during this time period, their traditional roles as healers and midwives were still important ones but women only ever performed them. These roles were mere extensions of their status as housewives as can be seen by the way the performed such tasks. Women would use their knowledge of herbs to concoct remedies for the sick and they would record them in recipe books to be handed down to their children. They would also hand down certain recipes by word of mouth. Source A supports this in that it shows a lay Sister preparing a remedy in just such a way. With the advent of a more medicine-aware society, the role of healer shifted into the hands of merchants and businessman.

New drugs coming in from foreign lands, such as the New World, were handled by these very people and were not available to women. Source B shows that when it says: New and expensive cures were developed using the drugs imported as a result of trade between Europe and India, China and the New World These drugs were handled by merchants and businessmen, surgeons and apothecaries. They were not easily available for women to use. They were obtained by men, handled by men, and sold to men.

The traditional medicine-woman was left with her herbs, which were far less successful than the new drugs now available on the market. It was not long before women were forced out of their other traditional role, professional midwifery. In 1620 Peter Chamberlain invented the forceps and put the role of the midwife firmly in the hands of trained physicians due to the necessity of some knowledge of anatomy. Naturally, poorer women had no choice to make use of the services of women midwives but richer women went to the professionals. Of course, women were banned from studying anatomy due to the fact that no universities would accept a female student. The second significant change was the change in medical theory that happened during this time period.

Since Roman times Galen had always been the foremost authority on anatomical theory. Nobody had questioned his theories; the Church had forbidden any challenges to Galens work because his theories fitted in with the Church belief in a system ordained by nature. Furthermore, they did not allow dissections of human beings (the very reason why Galens theories were incorrect) so it was virtually impossible to provide proof that Galens theories were wrong. However, times were changing, as was the Church.

They no longer stipulated that no dissections were allowed of human beings. This opened the door for physicians such as Vesalius, as can be seen in source B: New ideas about medicine were developed by scholars in the universities during the Renaissance and Scientific Revolution. These new ideas were based on the close observation and dissection of the human body. Vesalius did not set out to disprove Galen; in fact he had great respect for the man. It took him 12 years to openly admit that Galen was incorrect in his second edition of his book, The Fabric of the Human Body.

However, the fact remained that he did prove him to be wrong and this changed dramatically the way people thought about anatomy. This paved the way to cures that were carefully based on the inner workings of the human body and these ultimately turned out to be much more successful than the guess work based on flawed theories that had been the practice for so many years. In conclusion, whilst the first change, the changes in the roles assumed by women, is still an important part of medical history in this time period, it didnt change the use of medicine to better society in a significant way. The increased interest in the study of anatomy, and the rewriting of major medical theories, made a drastic change to the remedies used to treat patients.

The study of anatomy was the first step towards the modern medicine in use today and it kick-started the field of medicine, a field that had been held previously by amateurs. It was now in the hands of professionals who ensured that it was developed sufficiently to help other people. b) i) William Harvey, an English physician, pioneered the theory of circulation of the blood. The way the blood travelled through the body had always baffled researchers but now Harvey had discovered exactly how it worked. He discovered that blood circulated the body and was not used up like Galen had theorise d previously. Furthermore, he said that it was pumped round by the heart, not the liver, and it only moved in one direction.

In his book he included numerous diagrams of experiments that he had performed to prove his theory. One such experiment was one that proved with no doubt that there were valves in arteries to stop it flowing backwards. This experiment could be performed by everyone and it was an excellent way of proving his theories. His other stipulation, that blood was not used up, finally paved the way to the practice of bloodletting being abandoned. Whilst Harveys discovery of the circulatory system was the result of not only his work but that of Vesalius and others, it was he who proved all of the theories, brought them all together and, more importantly, provided the final answer. His work still remains to true to this day and this makes his contribution to modern medicine one of the greatest. ii) Perhaps one of the most important inventions of the Renaissance was the printing press.

For the first time, books could be published quickly and effortlessly, making the age-old practice of laboriously copying out a book by hand obsolete. This meant that medical pioneers such as Harvey and Vesalius could have their works published in mass to allow students to learn from their theories much more easily. The Renaissance also brought a new sense of excitement at the prospect of travelling. Voyages of discovery brought back exotic new drugs and remedies that the new field of medicine could make use of. Most important to Harvey was the fascination in highly detailed portrayal of people and objects in art. This meant that physicians such as Harvey could employ an artist who could record exactly their experiments with highly detailed diagrams and sculptures.

This greatly aided the sharing of ideas and theories such as Harveys and it ensured that they were understood and supported by others. As mentioned above, the printing press played an important part in Harveys success and the printing press was also partly due to the Scientific Revolution that was happening at the same time. This also ensured that dissections could be performed to prove his theories and widen his knowledge and the knowledge of other physicians. Lastly, it meant that he could use experiments as mentioned above so that people could check his theories and see for themselves that he was correct. These experiments were often influenced by modern technology, such as the water pump. Harvey was influenced enough by the Renaissance and the Scientific Revolution to give him the perseverance necessary to put his theories forward and show to people that they were correct.

The continuing interest and excitement in medicine also ensured that he was motivated to continue his studies to better his field. c) i) The attitude of society, and particularly Elizabeth Garretts father, towards women doctors at the time was one of contempt. People felt that women had neither the intelligence nor the composure to act as good doctors so they went to all lengths to ensure that they werent allowed to become them. Elizabeth Garrett was not the first woman to become a doctor. Elizabeth Blackwell, who was trained in America, was the truly first woman doctor. Garrett met her in 1859 and was inspired to further her cause. Garretts father thought the idea was disgusting, although he did come round to the idea eventually, and this only served to spur her on even more.

She made her cause much more public and felt as though she was acting for all women, which can be seen when she says: I think my work is plain: to go on acting as pioneer to achieve this. Even though by doing so I spend the best years of my life because other students will reap the benefit. In this way she could well be thought of as a pioneer. She had the necessary intelligence to become a doctor but she needed to be accepted by either the College of Physicians, the College of Surgeons or the Society of Apothecaries.

Both colleges had strict rules stating that they did not accept any women. However the society rules were much more vague and after an arduous legal battle it was forced to accept her. Unfortunately for other women, they changed their rules immediately to ensure that no other women could follow in her footsteps. In 1870 she became a Doctor of medicine. The excuses used against her becoming a doctor were primarily that medicine was a mans world and a mans career, and that the language used in lectures was crude and therefore unacceptable for women. The fact that this attitude remained at the time of her protests proved that, despite her not being the first women doctor, medicine was not yet ready for women doctors.

However, she succeeded against the odds and in the process advertised her cause to the world. This makes her a true pioneer. ii) Elizabeth Garrett felt it was necessary to exercise tact and show womanliness of manner because she was entering into a mans world and the majority of men were opposed to women doctors. She needed desperately to show intelligent, thoughtful and, above all, tactful answers. She needed to show that there was no reason to disallow women to become doctors. Most importantly, she had to dash claims that she was just a man in womens shoes by showing that she could be a woman as well as a doctor, hence her saying, show womanliness of manner. She realised that time would be needed before change could occur.

That is not to say that she gave up the struggle for equality, she merely tackled the issues in front of her with tact and in a careful manner. Furthermore, she knew that it was important that she proved her critics wrong. In order to win people over she had to prove that women were biologically, psychologically and socially fit to become doctors. d) In 1914 people thought that the war would be short and the attitude from society remained unchanged. There were very few women doctors and the general attitude of men towards women with aspirations in medicine was to go and sit quietly at home!

However, there were some women doctors but unfortunately, this attitude still hindered their efforts. As Source D states: In 1914 a group led by Dr Elsie Inglis tried to volunteer. Even though they had raised enough money to set up a field hospital (a hospital for soldiers near the battlefields of Northern France). They were told to go and sit quietly at home Needless to say, as the war continued the country needed more trained doctors. Conscription took most trained physicians into the field leaving few doctors left back home to practice for the remaining population.

Women were already heavily involved in nursing in fact many nurses were women. Whilst the British Red Cross remained reluctant to send women doctors into the field, the French Red Cross was much less so and sent many to practice medicine in Serbia. It must be remembered that it took, and still does take, 5 to 6 years to qualify as a doctor so it was important to start training women interested in medicine. More hospitals began to accept women training to be doctors and so did University College London. In conclusion, the main factor that brought about the change was the severe lack of trained doctors in Britain, due to the war, but a shift in attitude to womens equality also played a small part. e) There is no doubt that Elizabeth Garrett Anderson played a very important role in the cause to allow women to train as doctors.

Despite not being the first woman to become a doctor, she was the first to publicise her campaign and the first to get people to realise that there was no good reason to disallow women from training as doctors. She knew her cause and was determined to achieve her aim, as she says herself in Source C: I think my work is plain: to go on acting as pioneer to achieve this. In this way she could certainly be called a pioneer. World War I, on the other hand, allowed other women to practice medicine due to the unexpected length of the war, the number of wounded and the lack of doctors due to conscription. Conscription also drove down the number of men training as doctors, particularly after 1916.

Around this time there was also a drastic change in attitudes towards women, particularly in medicine. People were used to women treating them, mainly due to the war. For two years (and to a lesser extent the first three years) the doctors and nurses treating the sick and injured were almost all women. Another reason for the change in attitudes towards women was the two womens suffrage organisations that were protesting around this time. The most well known of these are the suffragettes who began their famous, more violent, protests in 1910. People were coming to terms with the fact that women are equal to men.

In conclusion, I think that the most important influence in the development of medical training was World War I. Whilst Garretts triumphs opened peoples mind to the prospect of women doctors, it did little to ensure that women were allowed to actually train to become them. Immediately after she qualified, the Society of Apothecaries altered its rules to ensure that no woman could join again. It was World War I that opened the doors of medicine to women. Britain was forced to admit that it needed women as physicians. Women were returned to their role as healers, a role that they had held for centuries previously, but this time as equals. It was only due to the depleting supply of doctors that universities were forced to admit women to ensure that there were still people back home who could treat the sick and the wounded.

This rise can be seen from Source E. You can see a massive rise between 1919 and 1920. Considering that it takes 5 to 6 years to quality to become a doctor, these women must have began training in around 1914 the beginning of World War I. (Words: 2469).