medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
From: Nancy McKenna <[log in to unmask]>
>> I am not happy with the idea that dying-in-childbirth tidied up the
ratios. The documents I have worked with -- generally Venice 1300-1550,
including a necrology for the Greek community for 250 years, suggest that this
is much lower in the list of causes of female mortality than dysenteries,
pneumonia & "fever" (probably often malaria).
> I agree. necrology lists for the colonial period also shows that less than
5% of deaths of women could be considered possibly from childbirth. If I
recall, this was a correlation of deaths of the mother within a year of a
child's birth, so even that number could easily be considered high.
i'm definitely Statistically Challenged, but that 17-18th c. 5% (which i
assume would not have differed much from the middlevil number) represented an
*additional* threat for woemen which would *not* have been shared by the male
population.
however, the secular male population (of the "nobility") would have been
subjected to the dangers inherent in training for and engaging in a Military
Lifestyle, which might --or might not-- have amounted to a mortality rate of
5%, over and above that due to disease.
so, that's a wash, at best, is it not?
interestingly, the Regular clergy --except, perhaps, for the earliest
Cistercians-- would have had the best shot at a long life, what with living
within a population mostly isolated from outside contagion, not much in the
way of Heavy Lifting on a daily basis, the best Health Care available at the
time anywhere (presumably every monastery of any size had its own Bro. Cadfael
on call, 24x7), plenty of food, excellent hospice services, etc.
c
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ghouls and tools of the Christian right :
http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2005/03/21/schiavo_courts/story.jpg
"[Michael Schiavo] said U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, who is leading a
charge to extend Terri Schiavo's life, is a 'little slithering snake'
pandering for votes."
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/03/20/news_pf/Tampabay/Schiavo___Come_down__.shtml
Schiavo: 'Come down, President Bush'
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Tom DeLay's conduct is odious. He represents everything bad about Congress.
His principal pastime is raising large amounts of money from wicked people in
return for hurting the public good.
"The notion that Tom DeLay of Texas is entitled to usurp Florida's rule of law
with the claim of being morally superior is akin to Bill Clinton coming down
to lecture us on marital fidelity."
--Howard Troxler, St. Petersburg Times
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/03/22/Columns/With_all_laws_flatten.shtml
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Mr. DeLay moved yesterday to file a friend of the court brief with the
Supreme Court asking that Ms. Schiavo's feeding tube be restored while the
federal court is deciding what to do. But as he exploits this one sad case,
Mr. DeLay has voted to slash Medicaid by $15 billion, denying money to care
for poor people in nursing homes, some on feeding tubes."
--Maureen Dowd
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/24/opinion/24dowd.html?oref=login&pagewanted=print&position=
The Circus is in Town:
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/03/18/schaivo-gallery/images/photo08.jpg
**********************************************************************
To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME
to: [log in to unmask]
To send a message to the list, address it to:
[log in to unmask]
To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion
to: [log in to unmask]
In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to:
[log in to unmask]
For further information, visit our web site:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html
|