A deadly epidemic struck Europe in 1346-1352 at a staggering rate. The pandemic became known as the Black Death centuries later. This name was created by a mistaken translation of a Latin word ‘atra’, which meant both a ‘black’ color and a ‘terrible thing’. The plague was caused by Yersinia spp., which is prevalent in areas populated with wild rodents. It killed 25 million Europeans alone. That’s about a third of Europe’s population. It has been suggested that the disease was spread by traders along the Silk Road, which ran along Lake Issyk-Kul. This vast population decline led to an alteration in lifestyle as well as the destruction of the feudal society.
The social structure changed dramatically after the Black Death as the feudal class system could not be sustained. This had negative consequences for the monarchy, government and church. Due to the shortage of skilled workers, in particular those who required specialized training, there was a slight upward mobility. The government passed laws to try to bring fees back to the pre-plague levels. In the aftermath of the epidemic, the government enacted laws to reduce fees. As people became more desperate, there was a noticeable increase in crime. William Langland wrote in “Piers Plowman” that God was deaf today and would not hear us. The Church had lost countless members due to its inability to control the plague. The plague pandemic had a number of unanticipated and anticipated consequences that affected Europe. ‘…the Black Death, which is believed to have removed weaker individuals from Europe in a massive scale, may have represented an important force of natural selectivity. A study of skeletal relics in a London graveyard shows that people living before the Black death were more likely to die at a younger age. The fact that the number of people who lived beyond the age of 70 increased from 10% to 20% after the Black Death confirms DeWitte’s theory and the previous studies which proved that human populations can evolve in the face of large-scale illnesses, because gene variants allow some people to fight certain infections better than other people. It is true that the fall of the feudal society had negative impacts on the nobility. However, the benefits to the peasantry were enormous. They received higher wages, since lords began to demand more workers. Serfdom became a powerful force against the nobility. Positive effects like the ones mentioned above have a long-lasting impact on society.
It is evident that, despite the massive loss of life, the Black Death had a lasting impact on the economy and social structure. The loss of countless relatives, close neighbors and friends created a feeling of grief and hopelessness. Agnolo’s wife and five kids were killed by the epidemic. Some tried to cause death by dancing, singing or drinking on the street. After this shock wave, apathy took over. They did not care about their appearance and neglected the mundane chores. English was born, a language that has evolved into the modern English. After the death of nearly all monks who were literate, Europeans decided to develop a language that was easier than Latin to use in coping books. After the Black Death, society was permanently changed.
The Black Death’s aftermath had both positive as well as negative impacts on society. In the wake of the Black Death, civilisation made many improvements to try to overcome the effects. These have continued to influence modern day life.
