Description: This Element explores ideas about the sick and healthy body in early medieval England from the seventh to the eleventh centuries, proposing that surviving Old English texts offer consistent and coherent ideas about how human bodies work and how disease operates. A close examination of these texts illuminates the ways early medieval people thought about their embodied selves and the place of humanity in a fallen world populated by hostile supernatural forces. This Element offers a comprehensive and accessible introduction to medical practice and writing in England before the Norman Conquest, draws on dozens of remedies, charms, and prayers to illustrate cultural concepts of sickness and health, provides a detailed discussion of the way impairment and disability were treated in literature and experienced by individuals, and concludes with a case study of a saint who died of a devastating illness while fighting demons in the fens of East Anglia.
Review Quotes: 'Batten has provided precisely what the Cambridge Elements series claims to offer: an erudite outline of a timely topic that serves a clear purpose for both seasoned researchers and newcomers to the scholarly conversation. Its length, design, and price point make it broadly accessible without compromising on quality. Like other Elements in the series, Health and the Body in Early Medieval England is likely to become a staple of teaching and research for years to come.' Renée R. Trilling, Journal of English and Germanic Philology