The black death?

Question

I'm doing a summer assignment and i read this quote on what the people the people thought caused the black death. What do u think this quote means?
" THe knowledge that the disease meant almost certain death provoked the most profound pessimism"

Pessimism has 2 meanings one meaning the tendency to expect the worst and the other meaning evil outweighs the good in life. WHich one do you think it is?


Sorry if this is boring but thank you.lol

Answer 1

Expecting the worst in this case. Treatment was symptomatic since there was no understanding of what actually caused the disease, or a truly effective way to stop it. Once you had the disease experience told you that you were not likely to live and the profound nature of the pessimism led to poor care and more deaths. After all, if you couldn't cure it, why bother.

Answer 2

I think that the quote probably means that since so many people died and everyone that lived during the black death knew people dying everyday. It was a terrible time and no one really knew how to stop the sickness or even how to fight it. I know that If I had been alive during that time I would be pessimistic about life...... people probably thought the world was ending. Wouldn't you look at the glass as half empty?

Answer 3

The quote means that, since people didn't know what caused the plague or how to cure it, they had given up hope. They had grown to expect the worst, and most often they were right in doing so.

Answer 4

Both meanings can be interpreted. There was of course no way to prevent or treat it, so people didn't know if they or their family would survive. Imagine being at the mercy of something you can't control, and fearing the loss of everyone and everything you hold dear.The plague years were as frightening for people as being caught up in any war or famine. Actually this is an interesting if gloomy subject.

Answer 5

I think in this case it means that they were resigned to the fact that they were going to die. People did tend to expect the worst during the time of the BD as there was no known cure and they didn't know the real cause (there is still controversy over exactly what it was).

Answer 6

Well expect the worst I guess. Having the plague was an instant death sentence in those times

Answer 7

In this sense, pessimism is a sense of hopelessness and resignation that you were more than likely going to become infected and then die of the plague.

Answer 8

Another good source of material about the plague, the book "Disease and History."

Answer 9

they both mean essentially the same thing, that youre looking at the glass as being half empty, or a tendency to be negative most of the time

Answer 10

black death is the time period of the early days where ppl died due to a disease caused by rats i.e plague ill give u a link where ull get to no more about black death

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Death