Dramatic, deadly, and terrifying in their brutal immediacy, outbreaks of epidemic disease have devastated and transformed human societies since the beginnings of recorded history. From the Black Death to cholera to AIDS, epidemics have wrought profound demographic, social, political and cultural change all over the world. Such is the power of their mystery and horror that while thousands die everyday in the United States from mundane illnesses such as heart disese or lung cancer, panic grips the land at the thought of a handful of deaths from seemingly exotic affictions such as West Nile encephalitis and "weaponized" anthrax. Through a detailed analysis of specific historical outbreaks, this seminar will investigate the causes and effects of epidemic disease, and will examine the ways in which different societies in different eras have responded in times of crisis.
