Medical and popular traditions of nerves

Dona Lee Davis and Richard G. Whitten

Social Science & Medicine, 1988, vol. 26, issue 12, 1209-1221

Abstract: We question the assumption that the common complaint of nerves in small Newfoundland fishing villages is a legacy of the late 19th century syndrome called weak nerves or neurasthenia, and instead trace the development of a Western medical science of nerves from the early 1700s to the present. Native descriptions of the physical, especially tonic, nature of nerves and of the moral strength needed to fight nerves are correlated with 18th century medical notions. Less resemblance exists between Newfoundland nerves and concepts of neurasthenia in the late 19th century. Moreover, the contemporary descriptions of nerves as a generalized response to stress and anxiety do not account for the culture-specific aspects of nerves which shape Newfoundland regional identity and shed light on their present day sociocultural adaptations.

Keywords: nerves; neurasthenias; Newfoundland; moral; character (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 1988
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