Health and Society in Bengal: A Selection from Late 19th-Century Bengali Periodicals

This remarkable volume discusses, for the first time, the nature of the interaction between western medical science and local knowledge and practices in late 19th century Bengal through excerpts from important Bengali medical and scientific journals published between 1850 and 1900. The articles reproduced in this volume not only reveal the various ways in which western medicine combined with local practices, but also depict the customs, traditions, social practices, religion, and economy of 19th century Bengal. Overall, this important book shows how modern knowledge practices transplanted on to a foreign society were infiltrated in various ways by local practices and knowledge.