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Empathy and Compassion in the Medicine and Literature of the First and Second Centuries AD

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Empathy and Compassion in the Medicine and Literature of the First and Second Centuries AD University of Calgary PRISM: University of Calgary's Digital Repository Graduate Studies The Vault: Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2014-08-26 Empathy and Compassion in the Medicine and Literature of the First and Second Centuries AD Porter, Amber Porter, A. (2014). Empathy and Compassion in the Medicine and Literature of the First and Second Centuries AD (Unpublished doctoral thesis). University of Calgary, Calgary, AB. doi:10.11575/PRISM/25880 http://hdl.handle.net/11023/1699 doctoral thesis University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission. Downloaded from PRISM: https://prism.ucalgary.ca UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY Empathy and Compassion in the Medicine and Literature of the First and Second Centuries AD by Amber J. Porter A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY GRADUATE PROGRAM IN GREEK AND ROMAN STUDIES CALGARY, ALBERTA AUGUST, 2014 © Amber J. Porter 2014 ii ABSTRACT This dissertation examines the emotions of empathy and compassion in the first and second centuries AD of the Greco-Roman world. It focuses on the medical texts of the period, but also explores the other genres of the ancient Greek novel and moral philosophy. Despite lacking a specific word for it, the first and second-century Greeks and Romans understood and expressed empathy in their writings. Compassion, on the other hand, does have a vocabulary. The terms which are used to express it often conform to traditional Greek definitions; however, many instances also show that it has widened its application as well. There also appears to be a significant amount of ‘cross-chatter’ between some of the literature in this era. The medical writer Aretaeus demonstrates a high level of empathy and compassion towards his patients and their families. A contextual and philological analysis of each passage exhibiting these emotions serves to highlight and evaluate Aretaeus’ empathy and compassion and the conditions that elicit these manifestations of emotion in his text. Soranus and Rufus, two other contemporary medical writers, show an acknowledgement and awareness of patients’ emotions, beliefs and attitudes as well. They also exhibit compassion within the construct of the patient- physician relationship. Two other physicians, Caelius Aurelianus and Scribonius Largus, take compassion to a new level, using the terms misericordia and humanitas, which serve to connect with the emotion of compassion and the concept of medical ethics. Plutarch, a moral philosopher, and the novelists, Achilles Tatius and Chariton, exhibit this ‘cross-chatter’ between genres of the period. Plutarch’s Moralia shows his compassionate concern with the moral implications of breeding and iii slaughtering animals. Chariton’s Chaereas and Callirhoe contains many references to the concept of φιλανθρωπία as an expression of mercy, compassion, benevolence and humanity. Achilles Tactius’ Leucippe and Clitophon explores the power one’s suffering has to affect another through empathy and compassion. Finally, Aretaeus’ ability to ‘feel’ his way into organs and diseases through personification demonstrates his empathy. Taken all together, this suggests that a permeability of genres appears to have occurred in this era whereby empathy and compassion became a common concern. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many people provided their help and support throughout the writing of this dissertation. Much gratitude is extended my supervisor, Dr. Peter Toohey, who was always willing to meet with me and to read and re-read as many drafts as I could produce. His guidance was essential to completing this project and I greatly appreciate all the time and encouragement he offered me. I would also like to thank the other members of my committee for their thoughtful and constructive comments and suggestions: Dr. Hanne Sigismund Nielsen, Dr. James Hume, Dr. Reyes Bertolin Cebrian, Dr. Frank Stahnisch, and Dr. Ralph Rosen. I would like to thank the Faculty of Arts, the Faculty of Graduate Studies, the Graduate Student Association, and the Department of Classics and Religion (formally the department of Greek and Roman Studies) for their financial support throughout my program, both in the form of scholarships and travel grants. Gratitude is also extended to the Calgary Institute for the Humanities for the year I spent there as the Francis Spratt Graduate Student Fellow. The resources and financial support were much appreciated. I also wish to thank the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, which funded my second through fourth years in my program. Dr. Noreen Humble and Dr. Lisa Hughes also deserve thanks for answering my Plutarch and art-related questions. And Dr. John Humphrey has my gratitude for leading such an amazing graduate student trip to Turkey on which I got to see Cappadocia for myself and learned so much. I would be remiss not to mention my appreciation for my great friends and colleagues. Special thanks go to Nicole Wilson and Katie Tipton, who have always v provided wonderful encouragement in times of uncertainty and doubt. Thanks also to Lesley Bolton, who has been available for consult and commiseration. Many thanks go to my family, especially my parents, Mary and Nelson Porter, who have consistently supported me in the pursuit of this degree. Your love and encouragement mean the world. Thanks also to my inspiring aunt, Joy Blundon, and to my late grandmother, Olive Blundon – I know that you would have been so happy and proud to see this come to fruition. And finally, I am eternally grateful to my partner, Mark Strowbridge, for his unending patience, understanding, and support. Thank you for sticking it out with me ‘til the end! vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ...................................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................... iv Table of Contents ................................................................................................................................... vi Abbreviations ....................................................................................................................................... viii Texts Used ................................................................................................................................................ ix Introduction .............................................................................................................................................. 1 Chapter 1: Did the Ancients Understand and Express Empathy and Compassion? .. 15 Chapter 2: Aretaeus of Cappadocia ............................................................................................... 49 The Desire for Death as a Release from Pain and Suffering ........................................... 57 The Importance of the Skill and Sensitivity of the Physician ......................................... 65 Deformity, Depression and Shame ........................................................................................... 75 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 87 Chapter 3: Ephesian Compassion: Soranus and Rufus .......................................................... 89 Soranus of Ephesus ........................................................................................................................ 91 Rufus of Ephesus ........................................................................................................................... 103 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................................... 114 Chapter 4: Medical Ethics in Caelius Aurelianus and Scribonius Largus ..................... 115 Caelius Aurelianus ........................................................................................................................ 116 Scribonius Largus ......................................................................................................................... 126 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................................... 136 Chapter 5: Animals, φιλανθρωπία, and Empathy: Plutarch, Chariton and Achilles Tatius ...................................................................................................................................................... 137 Plutarch and the Ethical Treatment of Animals ................................................................ 138 Chariton ............................................................................................................................................ 151 Achilles Tatius ................................................................................................................................ 167 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................................... 178 Chapter
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