Dr Simon Forman: A Most Notorious Physician
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Amazon.co.uk Review
Simon Forman is best remembered as an Elizabethan doctor and astrologer who had the good fortune to record his impressions of Shakespeare's Macbeth, Cymbeline and The Winter's Tale as an avid theatregoer. As Judith Cook points out in her captivating biography Dr Simon Forman: A Most Notorious Physician, besides Forman's value to Shakespeare scholars, he has been described as "nothing but a quack and a charlatan, an astrologer who purported to practise medicine, a fellow of bad repute especially where women were concerned". However, after carefully studying the wealth of obscure diaries and manuscripts that Forman left behind after his death in 1611, Cook has built up a fascinating and very different version of Forman, who was by the standards of his day "a careful practitioner of medicine", and "a man of many parts: showman, caring doctor, womaniser, credulous with regard to the occult, yet always questing after knowledge". The result is a marvellous evocation of Forman's day-to-day life, from a poor background that denied him a university education, to his struggle with the Royal College of Physicians and ultimate triumph as one of the most respected and consulted doctors to Elizabethan London's rich and wealthy.
With great panache Cook moves from detailed accounts of Forman's medical and astrological practises, to his extensive womanising, recorded in his "halek notes", or record of sexual conquests, ranging from his first shadowy marriage, through his tragic relationship with the Catholic Recusant Avisa Allen, Emilia Lanier (thought by many to be Shakespeare's Dark Lady), and his young wife who bore him a son in middle age. This is a delightful study of one of the more colourful figures of the time, that wears its learning lightly and offers a fascinating account of everyday life in Elizabethan England. --Jerry Brotton --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Book Description
Frst full biography of Forman - one of the most extraordinary and colourful personalities of the Elizabethan age. Brilliant account of contemporary medicine, and a vivid window on the lives of Elizabethan Londoners, from merchant adventurers and countesses, to innkeepers, market traders and whores.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Lovely book. Well researched. The good doctor is placed well in his time. I was struck (as a practising physician) by just how little the art of medicine has changed in 400 years, even though the science has changed beyond recognition. While I was interested to read about the doctor's "halek" notes, this is one feature of Elizabethan medicine I don't think need be brought back in the 21st century! ("halek" is Dr Forman's code in his diaries for the sexual act - mostly with his patients!)
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Judith Cook's talent spans from historical fiction to the biographies of many overlooked persons from history. In her biography of Dr. Simon Forman, Cook brings to life the reality of Elizabethan England and its inhabitants. Through a mixture of diary extracts, letters and detailed research, one is able to grasp the complexity and humanity of this man and his struggles to make a living, as well as live life to its fullest. I highly recommend this book to any lover of historical documentation and learning about the everyday people who tend to be forgotten in history.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The life of Simon Forman throws a fascinating and completely different light on life in Shakespearean London. Part shaman, medium, doctor, occultist, herbalist and quack, Forman is a riveting character, made all the more so by his riotous and complex sex life. It is always gripping when biographies are so well fleshed out with contemporary detail and diary entries, and we are lucky Forman's records have survived so intact. Extremely well written and well paced this is a great biography for anyone interested in the period, in early medicine or odd-ball characters of the past. Highly recommended..
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