The White Plague: Tuberculosis, Man, and Society

by Jean Dubos, René Dubos, RENE AND JEAN DUBOS

Book Overview

In The White Plague, Ren and Jean Dubos argue that the great increase of tuberculosis was intimately connected with the rise of an industrial, urbanized society and--a much more controversial idea when this book first appeared forty years ago--that the progress of medical science had very little to do with the marked decline in tuberculosis in the twentieth century.

The White Plague has long been regarded as a classic in the social and environmental...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0813512247
• ISBN13: 9780813512242
• Release Date: March 1987
• Publisher: Rutgers University Press
• Length: 277 Pages
• Weight: 0.94 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Timeless book about the social causes and consequences of illness.

I could barely put this book down. One fascinating theme is the link between perceptions of the symptoms of TB and social class. When TB was primarily a white, upper-class disease, the symptoms were viewed with esteem. For example, pale, thin, frail people were thought to be particularly bright, creative, and appealing. But that is scratching the surface -- there is so much that is compelling and interesting about this book.

A social study of science

DuBos et al examine the social aspects of the TB epidemic, along with some of the biological factors. They show how TB was romaticized, how it was portrayed as a demon coming to rob the healthy of life, and how it sparked scientific invention - in particular the stethescope. The introduction is wonderful as it lays out the basic parts of the book. Words of advice: this book is best read as a whole from beginning to end, as the authors build on the arguments they make in past chapters.