British Health Concepts From The Perspective Of The Media

Health is the foundation of all-round development of human beings,and individual health is an important driving force for social development.Every era has a specific understanding of health,and the concept of health is the product of social and cultural interaction.From the end of the 18th century to the middle of the 19th century,the concept of health in England had distinct characteristics of the times.The industrial revolution led to the development of the media industry.People discussed health issues through the newspapers,but at the same time,the England suffered from the "urban disease",and they were at a loss in front of the reality of rampant diseases.The medical environment had improved during this period,reflected in the progress of medical science and the training methods of doctors,but it was still too early to fight against diseases timely and effectively.The Times was known as the "faithful chronicler of British society",and was fairly well received by the public at that time.From the relevant reports of The Times,we could have a glimpse of people's understanding of health.Based on the internal and external factors,cholera and suicide were selected as the research objects.Under the influence of external factors,the public generally agreed that the poor public health condition was an important cause of the frequent occurrence of diseases,and different classes had various living and working environments,which made the concept of health take on a hierarchical character at the beginning.Affected by internal causes,the medicalization of suicide made people regard suicide as a kind of disease that could be treated.Suicide often meant mental disorder.To a certain extent,the lunatic asylum had become a place for the treatment of such attempted suicide,and the people who failed to commit suicide and was judged insanity would receive medical intervention.The two causes of damage to health had not been effectively curbed with the development of medicine,which was difficult for the English to cope with.The contradiction between the high mortality and the limited medical knowledge made people hope to obtain consolation and redemption through the power of religion.The concept of health showed the coexistence of medical and religious interpretation.However,individual capacity was limited,and the public's desire for health and the need for labor force had urged the government to provide institutionalized solutions to help people regain health.The state was involved in the process of shaping the concept of health.The Times is not only the reproduction of the health concept,but also shapes and guides the health concept.However,the concept of health from the perspective of media is a double-edged sword for social development.People learned and shared health-related contents with each other by newspapers,realizing the transformation from individual health to public health,and then promoting the improvement of public health.As the dire state of public health was reported,there was a recognition that relevant problems needed to be addressed as soon as possible.The newspaper shows the dynamic change process of public health concept deeply rooted in the people's mind.In addition to the positive effects mentioned above,some negative effects were also caused:the widespread dissemination of information by the media magnified the fear of cholera and suicide,and intensified the social panic;at the same time,the suicide was reported in an improper way,which stimulated persons to imitate suicide.