Medical Revolutionaries: The Enslaved Healers of Eighteenth-century Saint Domingue

by Weaver, Karol K.

• ISBN13: 9780252073212
• ISBN10: 0252073215
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-06-01
• Publisher: UNIV OF ILLINOIS PRESS
• More Book Details

Summary

Herbalists, diviners, nurses, midwives, and veterinary practitioners flourished in the medical world of eighteenth-century Saint Domingue. Using Western, African, and Caribbean remedies, they treated the maladies of slaves, white residents, and animals. While these enslaved medical practitioners were an important part of the plantation economy and colonial prosperity, they ultimately roused their fellow slaves to rebel against and overthrow French rule.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	ix
Acknowledgments	xi
Introduction	1	(10)
1. Saint Domingue: Life in the Torrid Zone	11	(15)
2. European Medicine in the Torrid Zone	26	(15)
3. Enslaved Healers on the Plantation	41	(20)
4. Enslaved Herbalists	61	(15)
5. Makandal and the Medical Care of Animals: The Veterinarians Who Inspired the Haitian Revolution	76	(22)
6. Magnetism in Eighteenth-Century Saint Domingue: The Case of the Enslaved Magnetists and Their Fight for Freedom	98	(15)
7. The Transformative Power of the Kaperlata	113	(14)
Conclusion: The Influence of the Enslaved Healers—Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow	127	(4)
Notes	131	(16)
Bibliography	147	(10)
Index	157