Korean Journal of Medical History最新文献

The advent of experimental medicine in the early nineteenth century marked a crucial turning point in history of medicine. Historians unanimously recognize François Magendie (1783-1855), a physician and physiologist, as a pioneer of experimental medicine. Despite his significance, research on Magendie's achievements and contributions remains limited. This scarcity stems from conflicting evaluations of Magendie's experimental medicine. On one hand, some claim that Magendie avoided hypotheses and simply accumulated individual facts. On the other hand, others argue that he implicitly used hypotheses. These differing views traces back to his disciple Claude Bernard (1813-1878), who believed it was impossible to conduct experiments without hypotheses. If Magendie was a pioneer of experimental medicine, then he must have had hypotheses as well. However, interpretations of his viewpoint on hypotheses vary. This paper aims to clarify this issue. By examining contemporary evaluations of physiology during Magendie's time, the concept of collaborative research with chemist Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier (1743-1794), and the laboratory environments where these ideas were realized, this study finds new insights into Magendie's approaches to experimental medicine. Magendie was extremely cautious in formulating his own hypotheses, but he often designed experiments based on the hypotheses of other physiologists. His criticism of Bichat exemplifies this tendency. The conclusions derived from this study are as follows: first, there is a need to reconsider the current historical understanding of Magendie's experimental medicine; second, the history of early nineteenth century medicine, particularly in the context of large-scale collaborative research, requires a different analytical approach than that applied to earlier periods.

Claudius, the fourth emperor of Rome, suffered from multiple health issues, including an unsteady gait, persistent tremors in his arms and head, and a speech impediment that caused him to stutter and mispronounce words since childhood. Despite possessing average or even above-average intellectual abilities, he was considered unfit for public office (cursus honorum) due to these physical conditions. Based on remaining historical records, modern scholars have proposed several possible diagnoses, including cerebral palsy, dystonia, transverse myelitis, or Tourette syndrome. While earlier scholarship argued that he had cerebral palsy, more recent interpretations favor dystonia or Tourette syndrome. This claim is supported by historical records that show how Claudius' symptoms fluctuated over time since his childhood and how he was able to maintain a relatively stable health during his reign, carrying out his imperial duties effectively. Claudius's physical impairments subjected him to harsh treatment from his family. His mother Antonia the Younger, his sister Livilla, and his paternal grandmother Livia treated him with contempt. In contrast, his adoptive grandfather Augustus showed some leniency, expressing hope that Claudius' condition might improve one day. None the less, both Augustus and his uncle Tiberius chose to excluded him from public service. His disabilities, especially his walking and speech issues, remained a source of ridicule even after his death. This is poignantly illustrated in Seneca's satirical poem "Apocolocyntosis," which was written after his death. Unable to become a celebrated soldier or orator due to his physical limitations, Claudius was far removed from the Roman ideal of leadership both in his own times and in posterior times. He was often met with contempt and discrimination. Nevertheless, he proved to be a capable and successful emperor. Although none of his contemporary historians explicitly recorded the efforts Claudius may have made to overcome his disabilities, such perseverance can be inferred from the subtext of historical accounts. In this, Claudius offers a powerful symbol of resilience and hope.

This paper examines the history of mask-wearing regulations in barbershops in colonial Korea, specifically in Keijō (modern-day Seoul) during the 1910s and 1920s. It focuses on the introduction and implementation of these regulations, as well as their political involvement with colonial hygiene governance and ethnic politics in the barbering industry. In 1911, the Government-General of Korea introduced a mask-wearing mandate for barbers as part of the Barbering Business Regulation Rule, making it one of the earliest mask mandates in the Japanese Empire. Initially, the colonial police enforced this rule to discipline colonial subjects under the guise of hygiene. However, starting in the mid-1910s, both Korean and Japanese barbering professionals began to utilize this regulation to compete against the rising number of Chinese migrant barbers. This paper illustrates how hygiene-related regulations, including the mask mandate in barbershops, interacted with ethnic rivalries within the colonial Korean barbering industry. Stereotypes portraying Chinese barbers as unhygienic and their shops as unsanitary were produced and fueled as Korean and Japanese barbers sought to eliminate their Chinese competitors, often with support from the colonial police. Ultimately, this case study will shed new light on the history of hygienic masks, which has so far mostly focused on medical settings, and will suggest future research avenues, particularly regarding its intersection with the social history of medicine.

This study aims to reconstruct the medical discourse on suicide in the late 1940s and 1950s and identify the strategies employed by medical professionals to decriminalize suicide. Despite the emergence of suicide as an important social issue in post-war Britain, the subject remained largely outside the purview of the public, policy makers and various specialist groups. However, the medical community approached the topic from a professional perspective, formed collective opinions as a specialist group, and sought to change the status quo and existing laws related to suicide. As a result, they became the only group actively engaged in the movement for suicide law reform. The strategies devised by medical professionals proved effective. They distanced themselves from moral and religious debates, framing suicide as a practical and value-neutral issue. They also adhered to a deterministic paradigm, defining suicide as the result of uncontrollable and, therefore, excusable circumstances. Factors such as mental illness, social isolation, and specific familial background were identified as major contributors to self-destruction. By focusing on cases of attempted suicide, rather than completed suicides, they shifted the debate in their favor. Finally, they argued that decriminalizing suicide would not weaken social control but instead provide a solid foundation for more efficient and powerful regulation. This discourse produced by medical professionals ultimately culminated in the passage of the Suicide Act 1961.

In Western society, the World's Fair has emerged as a significant national festival, serving as a new capitalist ideological device. Countries that hosted the fair often exaggerated their achievements, and Japan, which was at the forefront of modernization, participated in the event by adopting a strategy of differentiation and specialization in response to this momentum. During this process, Japan embraced the Western perspective to cultivate a fair culture characterized by Japaneseization, from which hygiene exhibitions were derived. As part of its efforts to build a modern state, Japan organized hygiene exhibitions aimed at instilling the concept of hygiene among its population. These exhibitions promoted public awareness by presenting visual data about diseases and the human body, thereby fostering a sense of fear. This exhibition culture reflected Japan's colonial governance techniques. Japan recognized that vibrant and engaging cultural events and exhibitions could captivate the public more effectively than any political framework. Consequently, a hygiene exhibition was held in colonial Korea that combined the themes of fairness and hygiene education. This study examines the history and distinctive activities associated with hosting sanitary exhibitions within the fair culture adopted by Japan during its modernization process. It explores how this cultural phenomenon established a connection with colonial Korea and analyzes the process of integrating fairness culture into Korean society. Additionally, this study investigates the details of the sanitary exhibition, which began in Korea around 1920 and gradually became a competitive event across the Korean Peninsula, touring smaller administrative districts centered around the main area. This examination is supported by contemporary newspapers published at the time.

Yŏm Sŭngik was a ch'ongshin or court favorite of the late Goryeo dynasty who was recognized for his ability to cure diseases using dhār ī and subsequently appointed prime minister of the country. Yŏm's quick ascension to such a distinguished post attests to the great significance of dhāraṇī among the people of Goryeo. Memorizing dhāraṇī as a way to obtain one's desire was a preexisting concept in the Silla period. However, unlike their predecessors, the people of Goryeo preferred the Baoqieyin Dhāraṇī (Precious Casket Seal Dhāraṇī) over the Mugujŏnggwang Taedaranigyŏng (The Great Dhāraṇī Sutra) as they believed the former text to be a more concise and effective vehicle for serving their needs. In this article I propose that Yŏm Sŭngik used his understanding of the period's spiritual and religious beliefs to combine the Baoqieyin Dhāraṇī with the maṇḍala of Esoteric Buddhism to create a new iconographic image in 1276. Sixteen years later in 1292, Yŏm supplemented the original image with spells from the Baoqieyin Dhāraṇī and added other details such as the name of the image's creator as well as the place and date of production. In this new version of the dhāraṇī-maṇḍala image, the various mantras from Baoqieyin Dhāraṇī are arranged in a circle that is imbued with the power of dhāraṇī and its therapeutic potency. The center of the circle is a maṇḍala composed an eight-petaled lotus as well as the thirty-seven deities symbolizing the birth and source of life. In this way, Yŏm condensed the essential components of Buddhist ideology that most appealed to believers to create a modified dhāraṇī-maṇḍala image that was produced in great quantities and distributed throughout Goryeo. Both the 1276 and 1292 versions of Yŏm's dhāraṇī-maṇḍala discovered in Buddhist sculpture. However, only the latter image continued to be made after the Goryeo dynasty. One example of the second version was found stamped on a silk chŏgori discovered in the Wooden Seated Child Mañjuśrī statue of Sangwŏnsa Temple in P'yŏngch'ang. Created in 1466, the Mañjuśrī statue was an important commission by the royal court. Thus, the stamped image of Yŏm's 1292 dhāraṇī-maṇḍala in this example of Buddhist sculpture demonstrates the influence and relevance of a new iconography that had persisted well into the Joseon dynasty. The dhāraṇī-maṇḍala image conceived by Yŏm Sŭngik in 1292 was worn or kept on the body in the belief that this act alone protected the wearer from affliction. Known as "an old man who practiced thaumaturgy by memorizing spells," Yŏm created the dhāraṇī-maṇḍala as an iconographic instrument that would cure any sickness that might plague the bearer. Perhaps most importantly, the new dhāraṇī-maṇḍala image was accessible to all as both a convenient and affordable means of healing. Lastly, Yŏm's dhāraṇī-maṇḍala was also incorporated into the garments of bodhisattva and Buddha statues, which served to amplify their divine powers of dhāraṇī.

This paper examines Hildegard of Bingen's embryological theory within the intricate landscape of medieval medicine and religion. It situates Hildegard's understanding of conception within ongoing historical debates surrounding the roles of male and female reproductive substances, particularly the concept of seed or semen. By analyzing her conceptual framework against prevailing classical and medieval reproductive theories, the research illuminates Hildegard's distinctive contribution to understanding conception as a holistic bodily process. Classical embryological discourse predominantly oscillated between Aristotle's one-seed theory-which positioned men as sole generative agents-and Galen's two-seed theory, which marginally acknowledged female reproductive participation. While technically aligning with Aristotelian principles by denying female semen, Hildegard diverged significantly by valorizing women's reproductive agency. she argued that women produced a foam essential for new life, just as essential as the man's semen. Also, the female reproductive body played a crucial role in purifying and nurturing the defective male semen, enabling conception. This conceptualization subtly challenged contemporary gender hierarchies, presenting reproduction as a complex, interdependent physiological mechanism with theological resonances, making the parallels of the woman's reproduction and God's creation. In conclusion, Hildegard's embryological theory presents a sophisticated intellectual intervention that reimagined female reproductive potential within medieval scientific and religious frameworks.

This study analyzes the career trajectories of students from Jeonuigam in the late nineteenth centry Joseon dynasty, shedding light on its educational functions by focusing on individuals listed in the Jeonhamsaengdoan and Byeoncheonpalsean. The primary subject of this research, the Jeonhamsaengdoan, is a valuable resource for understanding the career paths of Jeonuigam students, containing enrollment information for 384 individuals. The Byeolcheonpalsean, introduced for the first time in this paper, provides information about an alternative method of enrollment known as 'Byeolcheon' for students entering Jeonuigam. The analysis of these individuals' career paths reveals that many Jeonuigam students had overlapping enrollments in other technical institutions, such as Saekwon and Gwangsangam. This suggests that medical education was not limited to specific disciplines but was part of a broader educational framework. Moreover, the Seogyeong system allowed younger siblings to enroll alongside older ones, while the Byeolcheon system, which facilitated recommendations from other institutions, provided educational opportunities for families. These findings highlight the diverse methods in which medical and vocational education were conducted in the late nineteenth century Joseon dynasty. Approximately 66 percent of Jeonuigam students became medical officials, while others pursued careers in fields such as interpreting and various government roles, contributing to society in multiple ways. This study demonstrates that Jeonuigam was not solely focused on training medical personnel but was intricately linked to broader vocational education systems. Consequently, this study contributes to a historical understanding of medical education in the late Joseon period. Future studies should explore comparisons with Hyeminseo and Naeuiwon, changes in the social status of the middle class, and Jeonuigam's role during the transition to modern medical systems.

This paper examines the periodical Clinical Internal Medicine published by the Department of Internal Medicine at Keijo Imperial University in colonial Korea. Previous studies on medical research at Keijo Imperial University have primarily focused on preclinical departments such as anatomy, hygiene, pharmacology, and microbiology which produced knowledge that supported Japan's imperialistic expansion. This approach has overlooked the research contributions of clinical departments, often viewing the roles of preclinical and clinical departments through a dichotomy between research versus clinician training. However, Clinical Internal Medicine demonstrates that the Department of Internal Medicine at Keijo Imperial University was actively engaged in research. By analyzing the purpose and content of Clinical Internal Medicine, this paper reveals that its publication was an effort by the Department of Internal Medicine to address the demand for practical knowledge among clinicians practicing outside the university. At the same time, it reflects a commitment to enhancing the academic value of clinical experience and critiques the blind pursuit of experimental medicine in the Japanese medical community in the 1920s and 1930s. The case of the Department of Internal Medicine at Keijo Imperial University illustrates the transformation of clinical experience into "worthy" academic knowledge in colonial Korea. Based on these findings, this paper provides insights into the role of clinical departments at Keijo Imperial University in research and post-graduation education.

At the end of the nineteenth century, Hong Kong was in the midst of a malaria and plague epidemic which caused a fierce dispute within the medical community over disease theories and quarantine practices. However, the Hong Kong colonial authorities and medical community did not immediately accept the theory of etiology based on germ theory. Although germ theory was becoming scientifically established through research on plague and malaria in the 1890s, the Hong Kong colonial authorities and medical community did not immediately accept it. Patrick Manson (1844-1922) began studying tropical medicine based on germ theory by studying elephantiasis and malaria in Amoi and Hong Kong during the 1880s. However, he was unable to strongly advocate for a quarantine policy based on germ theory because the exact transmission routes of these diseases were not yet fully understood. Although the scientific community began to shift towards germ theory after the discovery of causative bacteria for diseases like malaria and plague in the 1880s and 1890s, many medical and colonial health officials in Hong Kong still held on to the quarantine policy based on miasma theory. However, a series of infectious diseases and destructive miasma theory-based quarantine measures were pushing Hong Kong society into chaos, and the existing quarantine measures was no longer sustainable. In the twentieth century, colonial authorities and medical community in Hong Kong adopted tropical medicine and quarantine measures based on germ theory as their prominent position. Despite the establishment of tropical disease theory based on germ theory, racial perceptions of disease did not change significantly. Instead, the theory of tropical medicine reinforced orientalist views of disease.