Quacks: Fakers and Charlatans in Medicine

by Roy Porter

If the thought of visiting the doctor or having a spell in the hospital gives most people pause to contemplate their mortality, then such thoughts must pale when compared to the experiences of our ancestors. They were largely at the mercy of a medical fraternity renowned more for the eccentricity of their cures than their efficacy. From the pisse prophets who would gaze upon a patient’s urine to establish the most accurate diagnosis, to the pushers of such remedies as “Walkers Jesuit Drops” to cure venereal disease, Quacks is a thrilling history of opportunists, charlatans, conmen, some deludedly sincere doctors, and—ultimately—of our own enduring credulity.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, History Of Medicine, Medical

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Roy's books cover several fields: the history of geology, London, 18th-Century British ideas and society, medicine, madness, quackery, patients and practitioners, literature and art, on which subjects (and others) he published over 200 books are articles.

List of works can be found @ wikipedia ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Porter )

Reviews

[Lauren Albert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting if sometimes a bit repetitive analysis of "quacks." Porter does a good job showing how overlapping the world of "quacks" and "legitimate" medical professionals was. He also explains how people decided who to seek out and why.

[Alistair · Rating 4 out of 5]

in progress

List of illustrations 6
Acknowledgements 9
Preface 11
1. Quackery 15
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8. 193

[Darryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an entertaining history of the men and women who were labeled as quacks in Britain during the 17th to the early 19th centuries. The term "quack" was applied to men and women who were accused of practicing medicine (Physic) in bad faith, those who traveled from town to town and gave public performances and demonstrations, sold nostrums that proclaimed to cure numerous unrelated diseases from 'Rheumatick Defluctions' to 'Wind Cholick' to 'Ptisick or shortnesse of breath', advertised widely in newspapers, or made outrageous claims about their clientele (many claimed to be the personal physician to kings and queens throughout Europe), their cure rates and the efficacy of their medicines.

However, Porter shows us that several practitioners who were labeled as quacks received medical degrees from Oxford, Cambridge or other renowned schools, and nearly all subscribed to the same medical theories and treatments used by the regular physicians. Many of the standard medical providers also used the same techniques as the quacks, such as advertising, frequent use of nostrums to purge the body of toxins that were the cause of illness, and frequent self promotion. The success of quackery was also aided by the lack of regulation, as neither the courts nor town officials sought to enforce standards on practitioners until the early 19th century, and by the state of medical knowledge in the 17th and 18th centuries, which was dominated by theories beliefs rather than proven fact.

Quackery slowly fell out of fashion in the early and mid 19th century in England, as alternative medical movements such as homeopathy, naturopathy and medical botany took hold, and as allopathic (standard) medical practice became more regulated and restricted.

"Quacks" contains several detailed accounts of notable practitioners, along with detailed etchings and engravings of quacks as they beguile and entertain potential customers. The book was overly repetitive at times, especially in the sections about advertising and nostrums, but overall it was a well written and balanced look at quackery in Britain.

[Hilde Helseth]

'A Book featuring the Medical Profession'

[Martine Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a terrific romp through quackery and certainly up to Roy Porter's usual high standards. As a writer I loved the richness of language, the proliferation of quotes and snippets of satire. To some extent there are parallels with today's alternative health culture, where outcomes are not tested and at the very worst, vulnerable people are scammed or even slowly murdered. Somehow, however, the idea of these quacks in all their variety, standing on wagons declaiming from town to town, reflects that bawdy, rumbustious view of the Georgian era I very much admire. My favourite parts were those dealing with advertising (hugely popular in newspapers) and some shrewd observations on sex and quackery, especially one of my interest areas, the Georgian focus on beauty and cosmetics. I would have liked more on women quacks and the links to the older 'wise women' and herbalists, but I suppose that's another book.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

As Porter himself concludes the book “has aimed to demystify the subject, disentangling the realities of irregular medicine from the verbal, ideological, and moralising smokescreens behind which it has often been hidden.””...quackery never prospers, for if and when it does, it becomes termed medicine...”
Something I read of background at work but a pleasing and informative book packed with research and context to the bigger picture of the life and times of ‘quacks’ in England. References to a marketer of teething necklace for children (p152) and an operation in 1700s done on affluent lady to lift an eyelid when during the procedure she yelled in pain the ‘quack’ reassured her “remember lady, beauty, beauty” to ease the pain.
My biggest annoyance is it sat on my ‘to read’ pile for two years and wish I had opened it the minute it was received, great read.

[Jonathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Commissioned by me at Tempus Publishing (now the History Press). The glowing review from the Mail on Sunday says it all: 'Entertaining… the joy of this book lies in the colourful characters. My favourite is James Graham, a sex guru who guaranteed bliss and fertility in his patent 'Grand Celestial Bed' in return for what was then the vast sum of £50. He had no shortage of takers' THE MAIL ON SUNDAY

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lost interest quickly. A bit more self justification than required at the start and more Quacks than Fakers. Will try and get back to it sometime

[Christine Rapley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found much of it very interesting, but it was hard work. Although well written it seemed a bit of an academics book and not that engaging for me personally.