About the book
In 1748, as yellow fever raged in Charleston, South Carolina, doctor John Lining remarked, “There is something very singular in the constitution of the Negroes, which renders them not liable to this fever.” Lining’s comments presaged ideas about blackness that would endure in medical discourses and beyond. In this fascinating medical history, Rana A. Hogarth examines the creation and circulation of medical ideas about blackness in the Atlantic World during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. She shows how white physicians deployed blackness as a medically significant marker of difference and used medical knowledge to improve plantation labor efficiency, safeguard colonial and civic interests, and enhance control over black bodies during the era of slavery.
Hogarth refigures Atlantic slave societies as medical frontiers of knowledge production on the topic of racial difference. Rather than looking to their counterparts in Europe who collected and dissected bodies to gain knowledge about race, white physicians in Atlantic slaveholding regions created and tested ideas about race based on the contexts in which they lived and practiced. What emerges in sharp relief is the ways in which blackness was reified in medical discourses and used to perpetuate notions of white supremacy.
Editions of Medicalizing Blackness
- Hardcover
- ISBN 9781469632865
- Paperback
- ISBN 9781469632872
- EBook
- ISBN 9781469632896
- EBook
- ISBN 9798890851062
- EBook
- ISBN 9781469632889
- PDF
- ISBN 9798890851055
Read an Excerpt
In 1748, as yellow fever raged in Charleston, South Carolina, doctor John Lining remarked, “There is something very singular in the constitution of the Negroes, which renders them not liable to this fever.” Lining’s comments presaged ideas about blackness that would endure in medical discourses and beyond. In this fascinating medical history, Rana A. Hogarth examines the creation and circulation of medical ideas about blackness in the Atlantic World during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. She shows how white physicians deployed blackness as a medically significant marker of difference and used medical knowledge to improve plantation labor efficiency, safeguard colonial and civic interests, and enhance control over black bodies during the era of slavery.
Hogarth refigures Atlantic slave societies as medical frontiers of knowledge production on the topic of racial difference. Rather than looking to their counterparts in Europe who collected and dissected bodies to gain knowledge about race, white physicians in Atlantic slaveholding regions created and tested ideas about race based on the contexts in which they lived and practiced. What emerges in sharp relief is the ways in which blackness was reified in medical discourses and used to perpetuate notions of white supremacy.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Medicalizing Blackness about?
In 1748, as yellow fever raged in Charleston, South Carolina, doctor John Lining remarked, “There is something very singular in the constitution of the Negroes, which renders them not liable to this fever.” Lining’s comments presaged ideas about blackness that would endure in medical discourses and beyond. In this fascinating medical history, Rana A. Hogarth examines the creation and circulation of medical ideas about blackness in the Atlantic World during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. She shows how white physicians deployed blackness as a medically significant marker of difference and used medical knowledge to improve plantation labor efficiency, safeguard colonial and civic interests, and enhance control over black bodies during the era of slavery.
Hogarth refigures Atlantic slave societies as medical frontiers of knowledge production on the topic of racial difference. Rather than looking to their counterparts in Europe who collected and dissected bodies to gain knowledge about race, white physicians in Atlantic slaveholding regions created and tested ideas about race based on the contexts in which they lived and practiced. What emerges in sharp relief is the ways in which blackness was reified in medical discourses and used to perpetuate notions of white supremacy.
What core themes, tropes, or subjects are explored in Medicalizing Blackness?
Society and Social Sciences > Society and culture: general > Social groups, communities and identities > Ethnic studies / Ethnicity
Where can I read a sample of Medicalizing Blackness?
You can read an official preview of the few pages here https://www.book2look.com/book/9781469632865
How long is Medicalizing Blackness and how many pages does it have?
Medicalizing Blackness has 290 page(s)
Who is/are the Author/s of the book Medicalizing Blackness?
Rana A. Hogarth
What are the ISBN numbers for the physical and digital editions?
Medicalizing Blackness is available as hardcover(ISBN 9781469632865) and paperback(ISBN 9781469632872) and ebook(ISBN 9781469632896) and ebook(ISBN 9798890851062) and ebook(ISBN 9781469632889) and pdf(ISBN 9798890851055)
Where can I buy Medicalizing Blackness online or support local independent bookshops?
You can buy Medicalizing Blackness from below
Where can I buy Medicalizing Blackness?