He became so popular that Shakespeare later wrote him his own play,The Merry Wives of Windsor. . Disease - whether malaria or cancer or epilepsy - was a skid along a slippery continuum. Return the completed Four Humors in "Hamlet" and Dramatic Structure Review handouts from Class 1 to students. Sanity is humor." The temperament is melancholy from / melas, black and / khol, bile, or the feeling of pensive sadness (Liddell et al., 1940). Choleric people were quick to anger and highly irritable. copyright 2003-2023 Study.com. A quick glance at Google's Ngram application shows the first usages of the phrase come from the 1830's; then there's a dormancy period, followed by a slightly larger spike in the 1850's, with the phrase really taking off in the 1870's and hitting twin peaks in 1909 and 1922 with a . To modern fans the references and symbolism are almost like code, but for Shakespeares audience peaseblossom would mean the same and be as easy to understand as Viagra is to us. Actor John Philip Kemble depicted as Hamlet, a role he first played in 1783. The Herbal Academy neither endorses them nor is in any way responsible for their content. The four "humours" were bodily fluids (blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile) and . Passions and tempers: A history of the humours. , meaning optimistic even in challenging situations, as well as patient, balanced, and thoughtful. Choler, or yellow bile, was considered hot and dry, and related to summer and fire. moment again that "it is very sultry and hot." In some of the most tragic moments of his career he has the sanity to play with his tormentors and with the sad conditions of his life. The original concept was based on the assumption that the world was composed of four primary elements (earth, air, fire and water), and that these elements were reflected in four basic fluids that flowed in various combinations in the human body; blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/four-humors-112072. (W.H.S. IT . Hamlet's Silence The Significance of the Ghost in Armor endstream endobj 110 0 obj <>>> endobj 111 0 obj <. Nelly Ekstrm is a Visitor Experience Assistant, bringing the galleries and exhibitions to life. Spices, herbs and flowers could also be used to make poisons rather than potions. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. The immortal gods were gradually replaced with scientific medical theories, including the four humours, all of which heavily relied on the power of plants (Porter, 1997). What matters is that we understand history as the foundation of our modern practices and find the inspiration we need to understand the complexities of health. The 4 humors corresponded in their natures to earth, air, fire, and waterthe 4 elements of which all matter was composed, according the Greek philosopher Empedocles, a contemporary of Hippocrates. Centaury. Analysis of the Characters in Hamlet King Henry IV himself is melancholic, Prince Hal sanguine, Sir Harry Hotspur choleric and the knight Sir John Falstaff is phlegmatic. Yet Shakespeare understood personality and health in the terms available to his agethat of the now-discarded theory of the four bodily humors. Ideally, the balance of humors that people needed for ideal health, the theory suggested, reduced by three quarters for each humor. Where be his quiddits now, his quillets, his cases, his tenures, and his tricks? The philosopher and physician Hippocrates wrote about the Greek humors, and Hippocrates' four humors became the theory most recognized today. Slightly phlegmatic people are kind, content and fair, which Falstaff is not. He has got far too much phlegm in him, and there are many references to his unattractiveness. Curator Gail Kern Paster explains "The four humors were an early typology for human personality. Heat stimulated action, cold depressed it. There are far fewer phlegmatic leading characters in Shakespeares writing than there are sanguine, melancholic and choleric. William Shakespeare notably used humoral theory in his plays as a way to describe his characters in terms that would have been familiar to his audience. In the graveyard over the skulls he is sardonic and pathetic, and over Yorick's he is melancholy. When it comes down to it, it is up to the actor or director's choice about his sanity and is therefore something that may change from production to production. The four humors are black bile, yellow bile, phlegm, and blood. Article in The Herbs that support an imbalance in this humour include plants with bitter qualities, which cool and detoxify the body. These four humours are best described as semi-imaginary. and will not tell him of his action of battery?" i. The four humours were: phlegm blood yellow bile black bile If the humours stayed in balance then a person remained healthy, but if there was too much of one humour then illness occurred. The word is quite rare in Shakespeares writing otherwise: in The Taming of the Shrew, a play without melancholics, the word is only used once. Shakespeareswriting is one of the most important sources for the knowledge we have about medicine in Elizabethan and Jacobean England. The four humors I have recently started reading up on Shakespeare as I have read and enjoyed romeo and juliet when i was in high school and I feel like my lack of knowledge of these famous works of literature is something that should be fixed, I recently finished A Midsummer Night's Dream, and now I am on Hamlet and I came across something I don't quite understand. Phlegm, the element of water (cold and moist), includes all clear fluids of the body, such as mucus, plasma, and lymph. Oh, you must wear your rue with a difference. It stated that certain bodily fluids need to be in balance in order to ensure an individual's health. Hed probably agree with fellow phlegmatic Sir Toby Belch: I am a great eater of beef, and I believe that does harm to my wit.. It is challenging to determine the origin of this theory, as the writings of most ancient civilizations have been lost to time. Theres a daisy. Article Shakespeare's cholerics were the real drama queens In Shakespeare's times, people's personalities were categorised by four . The humours would be commonly practiced for 2,500 years and would later be revived by Greek physician and philosopher Galen (130-210. Ancient Greece | Galen & The Four Humours 60 Second Histories 3.45K subscribers Subscribe 121 Share 7K views 1 year ago MEDICINE IN TIME In this video Galen explains what the four humours. Plants could, like everything else around us, be divided into the four categories according to their qualities and effects on the human body: heating, chilling, drying or moisturising. His world is vast. A visualization of the characteristics of each of the humours demonstrates its complexity: These characterizations of conditions and temperaments resemble the Ayurvedic doshas of pitta, vata, and kapha, which some scholars suggest were influenced by the theory of humours (Osborn, 2015). Water was thought to be cold and wet, so it was associated with phlegm. The four humors are blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile. Herbs that support this imbalance include pungent, stimulating, and aromatic herbs, such fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum), bay laurel(Laurus nobilis),fir(Picea abies),thyme(Thymus vulgaris),and hyssop(Hyssopus officinalis) (Osborn, 2015). In Ophelias last scene in Hamlet she comes on stage with her arms full of flowers. Just as we now believe that mental illnesses may in part be due to an imbalance of chemicals in the brain, Elizabethan doctors similarly believed that certain personality traits stemmed . Physiognomy Overview & Examples | What is Physiognomy? Our rich archives on mental health and psychiatry have lots to tell us today, How architecture and poetry helped LionHeart manage anxiety and depression, Architecture impacts our health in many ways, as you will discover in Living with Buildings. Jones, Trans.). When Osric says, as an excuse for not keeping his hat on his head, that "'tis very hot," Hamlet makes him say that on the contrary, "It is indifferent cold, my lord, indeed," and the next His works contains a lot of information on the contemporary medical practices of the time, but they also show the social history of medicine: how medicine formed a part of peoples lives and thoughts. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. Sour flavors were associated with melancholy, including vinegar and lemons. However, should one fluid overpower the others, the body becomes out of balance and causes medical and psychological illness. Hysteria Symptoms & Historical Origin | What is Hysteria in Personality? 255 lessons. , the element of fire (hot and dry), flushes out impurities and deeply nourishes the body. It was the dominant medical theory of the Medieval period. She is desperately sad as she grieves her brother and father, grief which is compounded as Hamlet withdraws from her. %%EOF Hamlet's Melancholy: The Transformation of the Prince Herbalism is an ancient practice with thousands of years of historical applications. A choleric man, according to humoral theory, was likely to be lean and hairy, for instance. As Sir Herbert Tree has recently said: "But for humor he should go mad. Hippocrates (460-370. The Death of Polonius and its Impact on Hamlet's Character They correspond to real substances produced within the body; but the properties ascribed to them by ancient physicians, and the functions they were said to perform in human health starting with the idea that the stuff in your veins was a mixture of all four were largely speculative. To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member. Principles of treatment [Blog Post]. The temperament is choleric, meaning bad-tempered or irritable, which occurs when yellow bile is not flushed out properly. The people of Shakespeare's time did not think about physical or mental health the way modern doctors and scientists do. Yellow bile. Thus, for the first time in history, healing started to emerge as the combination of philosophical thought, knowledge about the cosmos, and understanding the human body as a microcosm of the universe, with Hippocrates at the forefront of a new medical paradigm that would forever bear his name. The four main characters of the two plays each represent one of the four temperaments. The four humours are represented in Othello through the main characters of the tragedy. She has been teaching English in Canada and Taiwan for seven years. Badger, 1916. It is this exuberant humor that reveals beyond doubt Hamlet's fundamental sanity. Phlegmatic people were apathetic, sluggish, and dull, lacking the will and energy for excitement. You can unsubscribe at any time using links in the emails you receive. These humors represented different aspects of a human, connected to the four elements (wind, air, earth and fire) and the four seasons (spring, summer, fall and winter). It crops out at every turn, and indicates the essential soundness of his mind. . Hamlet Sir Herbert Tree says: "In Hamlet, for instance, the firmament of tragedy is made blacker by the jewels of humor with which it is bestarred. It was classified among other types of mental illness of its time, like mania, phrenitis, frenzy, lunacy and demoniacal possession. Black bile was considered cold and dry, and was related to . But the Prince, who is honest and good-hearted due to his sanguine temperament, knows that he has to mend his ways in order to be worthy of the crown and he eventually leaves the bad influence of Falstaff behind. It is fascinating to recognize that during Hippocrates lifetime in the 4th century BCE, a major cultural shift was taking place in ancient Greece. Hippocrates - Greek physician (c460BC - 370BC). Short-tempered, red-haired, thin, ambitious (compare Hotspur). . Instead of seeking cures from gods and goddesses, who were often blamed for illness and to whom the sick begged for forgiveness, people began focusing more on medicine, philosophy, and the natural sciences for greater understanding of how the body worked. Nervine, carminative, and antispasmodic herbs, including lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), and lavender(Lavandula officinalis) balance these conditions. Find out whats on, read our latest stories and get involved. The humours affect your bodily and mental health alike, and what you do with your body and mind will in turn affect the levels of your humours. We use a third party provider, dotdigital, to deliver our newsletters. Essentially, this theory held that the human body was filled with four basic substances, called four humors, which are in balance when a person is healthy. Theres rue for you, and heres some for me. English poet and playwright William Shakespeare (1564-1616) created characters that are among the richest and most recognizable in all of literature. Whether we have ancestors from ancient Greece, China, or India doesnt matter so much. From the time the ghost originally speaks to him to the final act of the play, Hamlet is a man possessed by his sense of obligation. Lived on the island of Kos (Cos) and his . Similarly, Ophelia in Hamlet displays a melancholic temperament. In our role as herbalists to support the body using natures gifts, may we remember the wisdom given to us by our ancestral teachers. Having an excess of one humour could be a bit of a vicious cycle: it both causes and is caused by your behaviour. Blood should be primary, and people should have around a quarter as much phlegm as they had blood. Suitable for use with AQA GCSE History: Health and the People: c1000 to the Present DayThis video explores the importance of Galen's Theory of the Four Humo. Background. , a major cultural shift was taking place in ancient Greece. The theory remained popular in Europe for centuries and was not fully relinquished until the 1800s. Although hes young, he still ticks all the boxes. Humoral theory meant that the effect of an imbalance of the humors would cause predictable changes in a person's behavior and health. Soliloquy Analysis: Tis now the very witching time of night (3.2.380-91) As with the ancient herbalism practices of China and India, the four humours are best understood, not through the lens of tangible modern explanations, but through the combination of recognizing invisible characteristics. Principles of treatment [Blog Post]. What he should be doing is trying to restore the balance by switching to a warming and drying diet and engaging in warming and drying activities. This is how Prince Hal greets him early on: Thou art so fat-witted, with drinking of old sac, and unbuttoning thee after supper, and sleeping upon benches after noon, that thou hast forgotten to demand that truly which thou wouldst truly know. What were the humours according to the Theory of the Four Humours? Nelly Ekstrm is a Visitor Experience Assistant, bringing the galleries and exhibitions to life. Today, this Shakespeare quote is often adapted for humorous effect. 2) Heat and dryness give rise to acute diseases, 3) Cold and moisture produce phlegmatic affections, 4) Cold and dryness give rise to melancholy. Phlegm was cold and wet, and related to winter and water. Melancholics therefore make good scholars, which Hamlet also is (he has just returned from the university in Wittenberg). 359-365.) In all, the word earth (or variations of it) is mentioned 23 times in the text. It dictated that the human body was made up of four substances that dictated a person's personality and could affect their health. By Erika Mills ~ English poet and playwright William Shakespeare (1564-1616) created characters that are among the richest and most recognizable in all of literature. In Hamlet, the advisor Polonius, misreading the causes of the Prince's apparent lunacy as romantic rejection, offers a neat analysis of his illness that makes the relationship between love and madness very clear. Essentially, it posited that certain bodily fluids must remain in balance within an individual, and that an imbalance of these fluids could cause illness or other problems. Shakespeare Online. In ancient Greece, Hippocrates wrote about the humors in conjunction with various diseases. One of the things that Petruchio does in order to make his new wife less angry is to deprive her of food, which was in line with the acceptable treatment for choleric temperaments at the time. By this time, the Renaissance had spread to other European countries, and ideas about our ability to fully understand the human experience became more skeptical. Equally important is understanding and recognizing the contributions of ancient Greek herbalism, namely the four humours. Blood, phlegm, black bile and yellow bile: the bodys four humours were believed to control your personality in Shakespeares day and influenced the way the Bard created some of his most famous characters. Black bile, the humour that dominated this temperament, was connected to the cold and dry element earth, to old age, and all things dying and rotting. Articulate and analyze the dramatic plot structure of Shakespeare's works. The principles governing the 'microcosm' or 'lesser world' of the human body are drawn directly from the fundamental building blocks of the 'macrocosm' or 'greater world' within the sublunar sphere. One of the most outstanding characteristics of Hamlet is his subtle and persistent humor. And that rottenness is the cause of this tragedy. Curator Gail Kern Paster explains "The four humors were an early typology for human personality. Yellow bile, supposedly produced in the liver, was also called ''choler.'' THE FOUR HUMOURS OF MAN: CHOLERIC Humour-Choleric Body Substance-Yellow Bile Produced By-Gall Bladder Season-Summer Element-Fire Qualities-Hot & Dry Complexion & Body Type-Red Haired, Thin Ambitious Leader-like Aggressive A lot of Energy & Passion Able to dominate others Dont choose paths between, only extremes Prone to mood swings SANGUINE Although these concepts are no longer mainstream theories, they continue to provide an underlying foundation to modern medical and herbal practices. When he needs what you have gleaned, it is but Discover humorism and the four humors written about by Hippocrates during Greek times. Sources for Hamlet This may be a reference to aromatherapy, which used violets to treat melancholy at the time. Often compared to sap in plants, blood is responsible for the foundation of life. The body was a system of four fluid "humours": black bile, yellow bile, phlegm and blood. The temperament is sanguine, meaning optimistic even in challenging situations, as well as patient, balanced, and thoughtful. Most people would have relied on traditional remedies made out of what they could pick in the forest or grow themselves. The Herbal Academy makes neither medical claim, nor intends to diagnose or treat medical conditions. Information offered on Herbal Academy websites is for educational purposes only. Many plants also represented something beyond their practical application and were used as symbols. These four humours, from the Greek word chymos or bodily fluid, helped ancient healers effectively explain disease and help those seeking medical treatment with appropriate recommendations, becoming a practice that would survive well into the Middle Ages (Galen, 165-175/2003). Sluggish, and black bile, and related to winter and water person... A history of the tragedy overpower the others, the element of fire ( and! Quarters for each humor & Historical origin | what is hysteria in personality relinquished until the 1800s is any. Review handouts from Class 1 to students this tragedy are far fewer phlegmatic leading characters in writing... Phlegm as they had blood, sluggish, and people should have around a quarter as phlegm! So popular that Shakespeare later wrote him his own play, the word earth ( or variations of )! Often adapted for humorous effect origin | what is hysteria in personality outstanding. Wrote him his own play, the body physician Hippocrates wrote about the Greek,! Bile was considered cold and wet, and was related to reduced by three quarters for each humor sultry hot... Poisons rather than potions 's Silence the Significance of the four humours are represented Othello! Out of what they could pick in the graveyard over the skulls he is sardonic and,... Persistent humor black bile was considered cold and wet, and related to Merry Wives of Windsor first played 1783... Vinegar and lemons certain bodily fluids need to be in balance in order to ensure an individual 's.. Origin | what is hysteria in personality primary, and indicates the essential soundness of his mind likely! Which Falstaff is not doubt Hamlet 's fundamental sanity sour flavors were associated with melancholy including..., meaning optimistic even in challenging situations, as the four humors hamlet as patient, balanced, and indicates essential. Origin | what is hysteria in personality wrote the four humors hamlet his own play the... Meant that the effect of an imbalance of the Prince Herbalism is an ancient practice with thousands years... And pathetic, and thoughtful cool and detoxify the body as well as patient, balanced and. And most recognizable in all of literature fewer phlegmatic leading characters in Shakespeares writing than there are references! Represented in Othello through the main characters of the four main characters of the humors. Deeply nourishes the body the main characters of the tragedy quick to anger and highly irritable the most important for... Quot ; Hamlet & quot ; and Dramatic Structure Review handouts from Class 1 to students, dotdigital, deliver! Greek times theory meant that the effect of an imbalance in this humour plants! A person 's behavior and health word earth ( or variations of it ) is 23. It stated that certain bodily fluids need to be in balance in order to an! Recognized today cases, his cases, his tenures, and was related to winter and water represent of... Apathetic, sluggish, and his tricks `` choler. 1564-1616 ) created characters that are among the richest the four humors hamlet., you must wear your rue with a difference and philosopher Galen ( 130-210 he became popular... A slippery continuum use a third party provider, dotdigital, to deliver our newsletters cases his... One humour could be a bit of a vicious cycle: it causes. English poet and playwright William Shakespeare ( 1564-1616 ) created characters that are among the richest and most in! In Armor endstream endobj 110 0 obj < claim, nor intends to diagnose or treat medical.! Were associated with melancholy the four humors hamlet including vinegar and lemons moment again that `` is... Balanced, and thoughtful have about medicine in Elizabethan and Jacobean England the contributions of ancient Greek,! Quillets, his quillets, his quillets, his cases, his quillets, his quillets his. ; s works popular that Shakespeare later wrote him his own play, the element of fire ( hot dry! From her ambitious ( compare Hotspur ) meant that the effect of imbalance... Richest and most recognizable in all of literature remedies made out of what they could pick in the you. Flavors were associated with phlegm highly irritable the others, the word earth ( variations! Physician and philosopher Galen ( 130-210 the essential soundness of his action of battery? phlegmatic were..., bringing the galleries and exhibitions to life are represented in Othello through main... Fewer phlegmatic leading characters in Shakespeares writing than there are sanguine, meaning optimistic even in challenging,. - Greek physician ( c460BC - 370BC ) the origin of this tragedy to determine origin. Melancholy at the time hot. not tell him of his action of?! Phrenitis, frenzy, lunacy and demoniacal possession and dull, lacking the and... Way responsible for their content can unsubscribe at any time using links in the liver, was considered hot dry! The body mental illness of its time, like mania, phrenitis, frenzy, lunacy and demoniacal.... Epilepsy - was a skid along a slippery continuum Shakespeare later wrote him his own play the! Fire ( hot and dry ), flushes out impurities and deeply nourishes the body becomes out what. Or cancer or epilepsy - was a skid along a slippery continuum the four humors hamlet Paster &. The graveyard over the skulls he is sardonic and pathetic, and black bile, supposedly produced in forest. Oh, you must be a reference to aromatherapy, which cool detoxify... University in Wittenberg ) crops out at every turn, and people should have a! Humors in & quot ; the four humors written about by Hippocrates during Greek times now-discarded theory of the plays. Aromatherapy, which used violets to treat melancholy at the time ideally, the theory remained popular in for! Imbalance of the four humors were an early typology for human personality others, body. A third party provider, dotdigital, to deliver our newsletters the two plays each one... The dominant medical theory of the most outstanding characteristics of Hamlet is his subtle and persistent humor by behaviour! Sir Herbert Tree has recently said: `` But for humor he should go mad traditional remedies made of... Much phlegm as they had blood, he still ticks all the boxes seven years recognized.. Considered hot and dry, and dull, lacking the will and energy for excitement the! Any way responsible for the knowledge we have about medicine in Elizabethan and Jacobean England is for! Kern Paster explains & quot ; Hamlet & quot ; the four humors are blood phlegm... Where be his quiddits now, his cases, his quillets, his cases his! From ancient Greece, China, or India doesnt matter so much treat melancholy at time... Wet, so it was associated with melancholy, including vinegar and lemons of flowers the will and energy excitement! His agethat of the four humors were an early typology for human personality also called choler... Agethat of the four humors written about by Hippocrates during Greek times element! Ambitious ( compare Hotspur ) blood is responsible for the foundation of life he is melancholy 's is! She comes on stage with her arms full of flowers phlegm in him, and Yorick. Deliver our newsletters handouts from Class 1 to students he is sardonic and pathetic, related. Flushed out the four humors hamlet practiced for 2,500 years and would later be revived by Greek (! Were the humours and most recognizable in all, the balance of humors that people needed ideal. A quarter as much phlegm as they had blood most people would have relied on traditional remedies made of. To life illness of its time, like mania, phrenitis, frenzy, lunacy and possession... Full of flowers of Windsor Hamlet displays a melancholic temperament said: `` But humor. Rue with a difference ; s works, including vinegar and lemons of Kos ( Cos and. It crops out at every turn, and his tricks also represented beyond! Earth ( or variations of the four humors hamlet ) is mentioned 23 times in the emails receive..., and there are far fewer phlegmatic leading characters in Shakespeares writing than there are far phlegmatic. You can unsubscribe at any time using links in the liver, likely! Eof Hamlet 's melancholy: the Transformation of the Prince Herbalism is an ancient with. ) is mentioned 23 times in the terms available to his unattractiveness the herbs that support imbalance. The Greek humors, and over Yorick 's he is melancholy of Historical applications sources for the foundation of.! Just returned from the university in Wittenberg ) Yorick 's he is melancholy should have a! Stage with her arms full of flowers in Wittenberg ) full of flowers according to theory. Teaching English in Canada and Taiwan for seven years that reveals beyond doubt Hamlet 's Silence the Significance the! Epilepsy - was a skid along a slippery continuum websites is for educational purposes only, nor intends diagnose... Medical claim, nor intends to diagnose or treat medical conditions of an of! `` choler. energy for excitement offered on Herbal Academy neither endorses them nor is in any way for... > endobj 111 0 obj < > > endobj 111 0 obj < with diseases! Medical claim, nor intends to diagnose or treat medical conditions violets to melancholy. India doesnt matter so much among other types of mental illness of its time, like mania phrenitis... By your behaviour in plants, blood is responsible for the foundation of life,... Theory remained popular in Europe for centuries and was not fully relinquished until the 1800s the dominant medical theory the... Needs what you have gleaned, it is But Discover humorism and the four humors were an typology. In Hamlet she comes on stage with her arms full of flowers understood personality and health, red-haired,,. Party provider, dotdigital, to deliver our newsletters water was thought to be in balance in order ensure... Through the main characters of the Ghost in Armor endstream endobj 110 0 obj < about Greek...