This conference aims to discuss the representation of epidemic remedies in medical writing in England and in France between 1500 and 1920. Prospective presenters are invited to address epidemic remedies across five centuries, bearing three main methodological observations in mind. Firstly, the pivotal role of the plague and the Spanish influenza as opening and closing points to the selected timeframe. Secondly, the working definition of “remedy” as a cure “for a disease, disorder, injury, etc.; a medicine or treatment that promotes healing or alleviates symptoms.” (OED, remedy 2). This comprehensive definition intends to allow for historical specification and diachronic terminological variation, which the prospective presenters are invited to explore and specify. Thirdly, the definition of representation as “the process by which members of a culture use language (broadly defined as any system which deploys signs, any signifying system) to produce meaning” (Hall 1997: 61), with particular emphasis on language use at lexical and discourse level, as well as the interaction between semiotic systems (e.g. word and image).

The present aim is not only to offer a diachronic perspective on the linguistic and visual representation of remedies, but also to focus on remedies prescribed during epidemics, with a view to better understanding the history of medical and health communication. Potential research questions straddle multiple standpoints - historical linguistics, the analysis of discourse, the analysis of lexis, as well as images - and multiple text types (medical treatises, medical dictionaries, periodical publications, medical advertisements through time). They include but are not limited to: