Physician Authority, Patient Agency, and the Divine in Ancient Greek Medicine
This article reassesses the consensus concerning the relation between Hippocratic-inspired medical practice and temple healing in Greek antiquity. This consensus holds that Hippocratic medicine and the temple cures effected in Asklēpieia were not perceived as oppositional or contradictory therapeuti...
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Published in | TAPA (Society for Classical Studies) Vol. 153; no. 1; pp. 175 - 211 |
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Main Author | |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Baltimore
Johns Hopkins University Press
01.03.2023
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Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | This article reassesses the consensus concerning the relation between Hippocratic-inspired medical practice and temple healing in Greek antiquity. This consensus holds that Hippocratic medicine and the temple cures effected in Asklēpieia were not perceived as oppositional or contradictory therapeutic outlets but instead as complementary "sectors of care." After reviewing the status quaestionis and challenging some of the conclusions drawn from the evidence available, this article suggests a fresh approach which emphasizes the negotiation of subjectivity and agency in the constellation of patient, physician, and institution as a primary comparative heuristic. I demonstrate the appeal of this approach by interpreting some of the only "patient-centered" narratives left to us from antiquity: the iamata from Epidauros and the Hieroi Logoi of Aelius Aristides. |
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ISSN: | 2575-7180 2575-7199 2575-7199 |
DOI: | 10.1353/apa.2023.a901020 |