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Short Essay
Disease has proven to be a vital part of how human existence is perceived. How a population reacts to a disease or often times how they do not react reflects upon much of the society's opinion of illness. In Rosenberg's article, Framing Disease, it is mentioned, "In some ways disease does not exist until we say it does, by perceiving, naming and responding to it"�. Yet there potentially will be arguments against this statement, with mentions that there are illnesses people are not aware of or pains and aches that cannot be classified into a certain disease. While there are exceptions to Rosenberg's statement, most of the time diseases are fully in existence after a population chooses to perceive, name and respond to its presence.
Before fully understanding the framing of disease, the word disease begs to be defined. For purpose of this essay, the opposite of "health" will define what is "disease".
Minamata Disease Poster
Disease?
Diseased TreeAccording to the World Health Organization, health is defined as the "complete physical, mental, and social well-being, not merely negatively as the absence of disease or infirmity"�. With this in mind, a disease that has arguably being brought to the attention of the public through perceiving and naming it has been cancer. The existence of cancer dates back to much before the creation of the laboratory equipment and technology that helps cure cancer, yet it was never truly a disease till the perceiving of cancer. The ability to see the disease bought upon the naming of the abnormality. What was once before just a mystery cause of death suddenly became a disease that very much existed and was thus feared. Yet it is not fully in existence till it is responded to. Which society has very much reacted to cancer and its...