WEBVTT - BrainStuff Classics: What Was The Great Pox?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Hey brain Stuff. I'm Lauren Vogelbaum, and this is another

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<v Speaker 1>classic episode of the podcast. In this one, we talk

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<v Speaker 1>about the Great Pox a k a. Syphilis and whether

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<v Speaker 1>a certain Bard may have been afflicted with it. Hey

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<v Speaker 1>brain Stuff, Lauren Vogelbaum. Here. William Shakespeare mentioned diseases often

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<v Speaker 1>in his plays, probably because he was literally surrounded by them,

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, aren't we all. But during his London based

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<v Speaker 1>lifetime in the fifteen and sixteen hundreds, such notorious illnesses

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<v Speaker 1>as the bubonic plague, typhus, and malaria ravaged citizens, all

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<v Speaker 1>made more potent and deadly by rodents, over crowding and

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<v Speaker 1>virtually non existent sanitation systems. Also striking fear into the

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<v Speaker 1>hearts of just about everyone were smallpox and the Great pox,

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<v Speaker 1>known today as syphilis. The two conditions actually present similar rashes,

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<v Speaker 1>despite being different in terms of type of action and transmission.

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<v Speaker 1>Smallpox is a virus spread by breathing. Syphilis is bacterial

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<v Speaker 1>and almost always sexually transmitted. The hallmark of both diseases

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<v Speaker 1>was a body riddled with pustules, also known as pox.

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<v Speaker 1>It fell to the people to distinguish between these horrors. Thus,

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<v Speaker 1>syphilis became known as the Great Pox, not because the

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<v Speaker 1>pock marks of syphilis were larger than those of smallpox,

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<v Speaker 1>but rather because, in the fifteen to seventeenth centuries, it

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<v Speaker 1>was the greater fear. Syphilis was likely introduced to Europe

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<v Speaker 1>when Christopher Columbus, that Guy and his crew brought it

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<v Speaker 1>back from the New World in fourteen nine three. Although

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<v Speaker 1>there are other theories, the timing is definitely suspect. The

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<v Speaker 1>pandemic began in Europe pretty much right after they returned,

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<v Speaker 1>killing many. Even those were lucky enough to survive, were

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<v Speaker 1>typically covered in scars and went blind. Of course, the Europeans,

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<v Speaker 1>for their part, left behind smallpox and other diseases in

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<v Speaker 1>the New World, sometimes intentionally, which, how long with slavery,

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<v Speaker 1>would wipe out millions of Native Americans. Fortunately, smallpox has

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<v Speaker 1>now been eradicated by vaccine, and we have penicillin to

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<v Speaker 1>treat syphilis. Shakespeare's writings indicate an interest in syphilis, such

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<v Speaker 1>as in the play tim And of Athens, where he

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<v Speaker 1>references the use of inhaled vaporized mercury salts, a common

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<v Speaker 1>treatment for the disease at the time. In fact, one

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<v Speaker 1>of his best known quotes was originally a reference to syphilis.

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<v Speaker 1>A plague on both your houses from Romeo and Juliet

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<v Speaker 1>was first a pox on both your Houses. Thanks to

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<v Speaker 1>multiple references of syphilis and his works, historians have wondered

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<v Speaker 1>whether Shakespeare himself was infected. Known for being a little

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<v Speaker 1>bit of a hustler, his signature during the last years

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<v Speaker 1>of his life indicates that he experienced a tremor, which

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<v Speaker 1>is a common side effect of mercury poisoning, which, as

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<v Speaker 1>we said, was the treatment of choice for syphilis. Of course,

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<v Speaker 1>any number of physical ailments can cause a tremor, so

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<v Speaker 1>it's unlikely that this posthumous diagnosis will ever be confirmed.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's episode is based on the article You've Heard of Smallpox?

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<v Speaker 1>But what was the Great Box? On houseworks dot com,

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<v Speaker 1>written by Leah Hoyt. Brainstuff is production of I Heart

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<v Speaker 1>Radio in partnership with house Toffworks dot Com, and it's

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<v Speaker 1>produced by Tyler Clang. Four more podcasts from my Heart Radio,

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<v Speaker 1>visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever

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<v Speaker 1>you listen to your favorite shows.