Misconceptions Shown in Fever 1793

Opinioned misconceptions caused a drastic amount of confusion in Philadelphia in 1793. A misconception is a mistaken idea. Philadelphia was full of cleaning crews and transportation in 1793. Some people were willing to trust that people could stop the fever while other chose to flee. They were all scared of becoming sick from the wrongly perceived causes like dead animals, dirty wharfs, refugees, etc. The novel, Fever 1793, written by Laurie Halse Anderson is about the devastation caused during Yellow Fever. The main character, Mattie Cook, is left to fend for herself and others while trying to avoid the supposed causes of the fever. The author of Fever 1793, Laurie Halse Anderson, shows the misconceptions of the time period through causes and treatments of Yellow Fever.

Anderson shows misconceptions of the time period by using the misperceived causes of Yellow Fever. Mattie does not understand what actually killed Polly and the others but word in the coffeehouse is that it was a miasma. She overhears this conversation: “I’ve heard stories of fever among the Santo Domingan refugees. They live close to Ball’s Wharf… Bad coffee is a nuisance” (Anderson 20, 21). Nobody understood how all of this could have begun, so they left it up to the doctors and scientists to figure it out. Under a tremendous amount of pressure, the doctors and scientists were doing research to figure out what the cause of Yellow Fever was, and why it was killing many loved ones. According to Jim Murphy, on page 15 of An American Plague, “Foulke said he knew the origin of the fevers: the repulsive smell in the air caused by the rotting coffee on Ball’s Wharf… Any number of things could cause this condition, such as poor diet, excess drinking, poison, or a dog ...

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...the first frost. If the doctors, scientists, or townspeople had realized sooner that infected mosquitoes were causing the disease, maybe they could have done something to prevent more people from getting sick. The Indonesian author/poet, Toba Beta, said, “Mistakes and regret, disease and death… aint recognized by mind capable of changing into otherwise.” The research done back then was not enough to stop the fevers from spreading. Maybe misconceptions happen for a reason, to teach people a lesson. Experiencing something once and not knowing what to do is what makes people stronger and more knowledgeable the next time.

Works Cited

Anderson, Laurie Halse. Fever 1793. New York, New York: Aladdin Paperback, 2002. Print.

Murphy, Jim. An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic 1793. New York, New York: Clariton Book, 2003. Print.