Black Death DBQ Essay Example

disease. People still alive during the plague benefited from many different things. Since large amounts of people were dying everything would cost less, there would be more jobs, and many opportunities to make money. And there were small prices for everything on account of the fear and death" (Doc 2). This explains that there were lower prices because the more people that died the less stuff that would be bought. Therefore, the store owners would lower the prices so people would want to buy their stuff before they died. Sheep and cattle went wandering over fields and through crops, and there was no one to go and drive or gather them for there was such a lack of servants that no knew what he ought to do" (Doc 2). Since people kept dying there were more spots for Jobs available. This led to landowner having no one do their Job. Not only were there Job opportunities there was also money making opportunities During the plague, a lot of people died and the majority of the people who died leaved a stench. People would form their own communities to prevent from getting the disease. Wherefore, they banded together, and, disassociating themselves from all others, formed communities in houses where there were no sick" (Doc 3). This shows that people would leave their families and everyone to form or Join communities in houses. They lived separate from the rest and cared about their lives deeply. "Not a few... Kept a middle course.... Walking abroad carrying in their hands flowers or fragrant herbs or... Spices which they frequently raised to their noses... Because the air seemed to be

everywhere laden and reeking with the stench emitted by the dead and dying" (Doc 3 ).

This displays that the corpses that were getting piled them for the beautiful smell. "For each graveyard, as soon as it was full, a huge trench in which they laid the corpses as they arrived by hundreds at a time" (Doc 3). People can conclude since there was so many bodies that it might have caused the stench. At the beginning of October, people stopped dying of the pestilence and this led o establishment of ordinances. "When it was seen at the beginning of October that no more persons were dying of the pestilence, they found that among males, females, children, and adults, 96,000 died between March and October" (Doc 4).

This evidence leads us to conclude that the plague lasted from March to October. However, this was bad for society. "When the morality stopped, women and men in Florence were unmindful of their dress. And ordinances were passed concerning this giving authority to the Judge of the Gracie to enforce these ordinances" (Doc 5). Women were untraditional because they were careless about their dress. In addition, this was not the only ordinance passed. They passed ordinances for weddings, loans, payments, and laborers. Since the rich ran away, people believed that the disease was directed toward the poor. Nice the rich fled, death was principally directed towards the poor so that only a few of the Paris porters and wage-earners, who had lived there in large numbers before the misfortune, were left" (Doc 7). Nicolas thought that since the rich let all the hate would be given to the

peasants and laborers. The rich were treated differently because they were under the king meaning that they could do small things like buy and and make rule but only with the kings permission. And the rich could also Just leave the village/city/town by Just paying the guards a good amount of money so they don't tell the king.

The poor had to stay in the village/city/town because the rich and the king thought that they would carry the disease to other place and if you had to leave you needed a certificate that says you do not have the disease....... People purposely ointment on gates to infect people. "About 40 people at Causal in Western Lombardy smeared the bolts of the town with an ointment to spread the plague. Those who touched the gates were infected and many died" (Doc 10). This is clear that people who purposely did that were shameless people.

However, people benefited from this by getting paid to smear the gates in order to obtain supplies quickly. There were so many deaths people would leave their families for survival. People would die in there house while they were asleep. They got rid of the Italians because they brought the rat-infested ships there. "Fathers abandoned their sick son" (Doc 9). Instead of caring for them adults would leave their families helpless. Everyone seemed selfish during the plague. Bodies were left in empty houses, and there was no one to give them a Christian Burial" (Doc 9).

Most people died in their sleep; therefore, for weeks no one would know where the stench was coming from inside the house. The neighbors would complain.

The groups that benefited the most from the changes caused by the Black Death were peasants and laborers. These were the people who saw demand for their services grow more than any others. Before the Black Death, Europe was overpopulated. There was a huge amount of labor available so peasants and laborers always be replaced. After the Black Death, the demand for their labor was greater Han its supply. This meant that these groups had power.

They could force employers and landholders to pay them better wages and/or give them better terms. This enabled them to rise up the social and economic ladder. In addition, there was a group called the flagellants. During the Black Death, the flagellants used to be people who stripped to the waist, gathered in large groups and bands and marched throughout the crossroads and squares of cities and good towns. They made circles and beat upon their backs with fabric and leather. They did so in loud voices and singing hymns suitable to their rite and newly composed for it.

For a month they marched through many towns doing self-punishment and affording a great scene to the wondering people. The Doctor Beak of Rome represented plague doctors. Plague doctors was a special medical physician who saw those who had the plague. The beak costume consisted of an ankle length overcoat and a beak mask often filled with sweet or strong smelling substances along with gloves, boots, a hat and an outer over-clothing garment. Pope Clement VI hired several extra plague doctors during the Black Death plague. They were to attend to the sick people of Avignon. Most died from the

plague (DOC 12).