Follow an Athenian doctor, Nikos, as he tends to the sick and dying. Those infected by the endemic faced a horrible death. Some of the symptoms included intense fever and laceration of the bowels along with diarrhea. According to the historian Thucydides, many developed “small pustules and ulcers.”
Nikos struggles to help his patients. One asks him to help him end his life. Bound by the Hippocratic oath, Nikos is not so sure that he can comply but he understands his patient will die a painful death.
Decide for yourself what would you have done if you were Nikos and find out what Athens looked like during this time using this multimedia website. Click on the “Chromebook Web App.” Once the website loads, click the down arrow at the bottom of your screen.
Your students will learn about Athens just as the plague breaks out. They will learn about possible pathogens like typhus and smallpox and what the endemic did to the political stability of Athens. The plague stretched Athens to its limits. Athenians blamed the gods, and ostracized leaders like Themistocles and Alcibiades, the most popular citizen after Socrates' death.
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