This will turn your body cold and dry and, of course, build up your levels of black bile. Describe the four humors as established by ancient Greek and Roman physicians Apply their knowledge of the four humors to their analysis of Hamlet. %PDF-1.7 % Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/four-humors-112072. Humorism, the humoral theory, or humoralism, was a system of medicine detailing a supposed makeup and workings of the human body, adopted by Ancient Greek and Roman physicians and philosophers . Unbeknownst to many, Hippocrates was also instrumental in developing the theory of the four humours: blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile. 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Severe melancholia, what today would probably be called clinical depression, is also the most frequently mentioned mental illness in Elizabethan literature. the first skull he says: "It might be the pate of a politician . Hippocrates (1931). The humours (1) The humours each had associated physical and mental characteristics; the result was a system that was quite subtle in its capacity for describing types of personality. Badger, 1916. The four elements, which constituted the fundamental building blocks of the 'macrocosm' or 'greater world' of the sublunar sphere, corresponded closely to the four humours of the 'microcosm' or 'lesser world' of the human body.. Each of the humours originated in a different bodily organ.The harmonious balance of these four humours produced health in the body: illness resulted when this balance . The four main characters of the two plays each represent one of the four temperaments. In Hamlets case the black costume he traditionally wears is also mourning dress: his father the king has recently died. Nothing can deter him from what he knows he must do to avenge his father. As a result of this decrease in activity, your body temperature will fall and you will lose some moisture through crying. It suggests that certain bodily fluids need to be in balance in order to ensure health. (2.2.555-612), Soliloquy In Europe, the theory remained widespread for centuries and still had its adherents as late as the 1800s. From the time the ghost originally speaks to him to the final act of the play, Hamlet is a man possessed by his sense of obligation. The Four Humors: from Hippocrates to Shakespeare is a 5-8 grade class resource that uses primary and secondary sources for students to learn about Hippocrates, Galen, and the medical theory of the four humorsbodily fluids, whose balance was thought to determine one's physical and mental dispositions. I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. Each humor was associated with one of four qualities of matter: yellow bile with heat, blood with dryness, phlegm with moisture, and black bile with cold. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. . 3. In Hamlet, the advisor Polonius, misreading the causes of the Prince's apparent lunacy as romantic rejection, offers a neat analysis of his illness that makes the relationship between love and madness very clear. 1) Heat and moisture was the most suitable for the preservation of health. Elizabethans believed that the balance of the four humors would keep them healthy. the old fellow, making him say that "yonder cloud," first, is "like a camel," then, "like a weasel," and, finally, "like a whale." Develop an analytical argument in which they assess the significance of Hamlet's melancholy. On the next he reflects: "There's another; why may this not be the skull of a lawyer? Hamlet: Q & A, The Elder Hamlet: The Kingship of Hamlet's Father, The Death of Polonius and its Impact on Hamlet's Character, Hamlet's Melancholy: The Transformation of the Prince. 255 lessons. Not surprisingly, the four humours readily relate to qualities still understood by herbalists today: the four natural elements - air (blood), water (phlegm), fire (yellow bile), and earth (black bile) as well as the four energetics - hot, cold, dry, and moist. balance these conditions. Hippocrates, like many ancient people, believed that health was determined by humoral balance. Last Modified Date: February 20, 2023. 83-99. Phlegm was another important component of humorism. Lean and pale, moving slowly, sad and brooding, perhaps suspiciously looking around for enemies. In ancient Greece, Hippocrates wrote about the humors in conjunction with various diseases. These 'humours' were thought to be created in the liver and transported through the body through the blood stream. The Roman philosopher and physician Claudius Galen formulated a concept of personality types based on the ancient Greek theory of humorism, which attempted to explain the workings of the human body. Regarded by many as the father of Western (and some say Islamic) medicine. However, everyone hasa natural excess of one of the humours, which is what makes us all look unique and behave differently. What he should be doing is trying to restore the balance by switching to a warming and drying diet and engaging in warming and drying activities. Soliloquy Analysis: Now might I do it pat (3.3.77-100) humour, also spelled Humor, (from Latin "liquid," or "fluid"), in early Western physiological theory, one of the four fluids of the body that were thought to determine a person's temperament and features. Choleric people were quick to anger and highly irritable. Hamlet's stubbornness is one of the survival tactics he has developed to counter his own reluctance to kill Claudius. . Osborn, D. (2015). , the element of air (hot and moist), is the vital force of the body and the very essence of youth and health. Learn what the four humors of the body are along with the humoral theory. Shall I be frighted when a madman stares? (Arikha, 2007). A person with this kind of temperament was not seen as productive and active in society like the warm-blooded sanguines and cholerics were. Theres rue for you, and heres some for me. As a member, you'll also get unlimited access to over 84,000 You can unsubscribe at any time using links in the emails you receive. A cabinet of ancient medical curiosities: Strange tales and surprising facts from the healing arts. Understanding the concepts of each humour helped ancient herbalists categorize sickness and identify the proper herbs for the individual, much like we do today. But in the tragedies they are more often the leading characters, generally elderly men. Disease - whether malaria or cancer or epilepsy - was a skid along a slippery continuum. Retrieved from https://www.passionsandtempers.com, Galen (2003). 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Sasha Blakeley has a Bachelor's in English Literature from McGill University and a TEFL certification. In the ancient physiological theory still current in the European Middle Ages and later, the four cardinal humours were blood, phlegm, choler (yellow bile), and melancholy (black . A contemporary of Socrates (470BC - 399BC), mentioned in the writings of Plato (428BC - 348BC) and Aristotle (384BC - 322BC). All diseases and disabilities resulted from an excess or deficit of one of these four humors. Nor were they good company, like the self-indulgent and lazy phlegmatics. Poor Hamlet, too much humor had'st thou for this harsh world!" Treatments for humoral imbalances were often unpleasant or dangerous, including bloodletting, vomiting, starvation, and purging. The Herbal Academy supports trusted organizations with the use of affiliate links. Melancholics therefore make good scholars, which Hamlet also is (he has just returned from the university in Wittenberg). (2019). %%EOF Article Shakespeare's cholerics were the real drama queens In Shakespeare's times, people's personalities were categorised by four . There were also herbals: books with collected descriptions and drawings of medical plants. Research the structure and function of thehuman body through our anatomy archive, Immerse yourself in the medieval past and explore what we have in common with the Middle Ages, Architecture affects our health in profound ways. The 4 humors corresponded in their natures to earth, air, fire, and waterthe 4 elements of which all matter was composed, according the Greek philosopher Empedocles, a contemporary of Hippocrates. Shakespeare was too Then he suggests that Rosencrantz is only "a sponge . Hamlet addresses frailty as though speaking to a human being. By this time, the Renaissance had spread to other European countries, and ideas about our ability to fully understand the human experience became more skeptical. Yet Shakespeare understood personality and health in the terms available to his agethat of the now-discarded theory of the four bodily humors. Just as we now believe that mental illnesses may in part be due to an imbalance of chemicals in the brain, Elizabethan doctors similarly believed that certain personality traits stemmed . He is working on his PhD. Folger Shakespeare Library is the world's largest Shakespeare collection, the ultimate resource for exploring Shakespeare and his world. Hamlet's Relationship with the Ghost The four humours were: phlegm blood yellow bile black bile If the humours stayed in balance then a person remained healthy, but if there was too much of one humour then illness occurred. Jones, Trans.). Arikha, N. (2007). One play really stands out when it comes to the subject of humours. What is the humoral theory. Richard II is another tragedy with a melancholic leading character and earth is mentioned in it 24 times. Similarly, the four humours loosely correspond to the wheel of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Similarly, the four humours loosely correspond to the wheel of Traditional Chinese Medicine. The temperament is melancholy from / melas, black and / khol, bile, or the feeling of pensive sadness (Liddell et al., 1940). Plus, get practice tests, quizzes, and personalized coaching to help you Hysteria Symptoms & Historical Origin | What is Hysteria in Personality? The Norway (Fortinbras) Subplot Because black bile was produced in the brain, audiences likely understood Ophelia's madness as deriving directly from too much black bile. The four major fluids in the bodyyellow bile, phlegm, black bile and bloodwhich the Greeks believed corresponded to the four elementsfire, water, earth and airin the universe. . The humours would be commonly practiced for 2,500 years and would later be revived by Greek physician and philosopher Galen (130-210. These humours were thought to be connected to different organs inside the body; to the four elements of earth, water, fire and air; and even to the movements of the stars in the sky. Drawing, c.1793.'. The four humors were blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile. No character in all Shakespeare is more evenly balanced, and no mind more capable of seeing things in all their bearings. y-axis (horizontal): Thinking - Feeling scale. I feel like its a lifeline. Black Bile. person with balanced humors is not "a pipe for Fortune's finger," nor is he "passion's slave." This Treatment for phlegmatic personalities included avoiding foods thought to be insipid or flavorless, including cucumber, lettuce, and fish, and instead eating choleric foods like capers, olives, garlic, onions, parsley, and other bitter and salty foods. 16th-century illustration of the four humors: Flegmat (phlegm), Sanguin (blood), Coleric (yellow bile) and Melanc (black bile). your songs? This explains the Hippocratic . The Death of Polonius and its Impact on Hamlet's Character Shakespeare Online. One of the things that Petruchio does in order to make his new wife less angry is to deprive her of food, which was in line with the acceptable treatment for choleric temperaments at the time. Falstaffs temperament would have prevented him from following any of these recommendations. Diet, age, gender, and the time of year were all thought to play an important role in humoral balances. Analysis: To be, or not to be (3.1.64-98) In our role as herbalists to support the body using natures gifts, may we remember the wisdom given to us by our ancestral teachers. Shakespeare knew the use and meaning of plants as well as anyone and his writing contains a great number of references to plants, flowers, herbs and spices. The black bile would weigh on you, and make you passive, sad, dull and indecisive. Hamlet, Prince of Denmark: the Four Humors (A) Main idea: Hamlet is not mad. 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