Yellow fever is known for its attack on Philadelphia during
the blow dried summers of 1793. ”Fever 1793,” by Laurie Halse
Anderson, is an insightful fiction novel that tells a story
about a girl named Matilda Cook who had a normal life until
Yellow fever knocked on her door. On the other hand, “Yellow
Fever Attacks Philadelphia, 1793,” is a nonfiction article
written by Samuel Breck a man who was a new resident in
Philadelphia shortly before the beginnings of the epidemic. Both
clearly show how the strength of Philadelphia dragged its way
out of the fevers grasp, but both use different and creative
writing styles that are tied in by this interesting topic.
“Fever 1793” is the writings of Matilda Cook, a girl,
living in Philadelphia when the outbreak starts. Matilda resides
in a small coffeehouse run by her family. Often a good hang out
for Philadelphians, when Yellow fever rolled in like a tumble
weed, lack of markets meant closing the coffeehouse, and there
was nobody around anyway. When yellow fever grabs her mother by
the hand and takes her away, Matilda is left to flee the city,
and move to the country with her grandfather. Her mother shows
similar symptoms to Samuel Brecks from Yellow Fever Attacks
Philadelphia, 1793. Her close friend, an African American named
Eliza, has been stamped by the physicians of Philadelphia as
immune to the fever, and is left with the job of tending to the
ill patients with yellow fever. Matilda herself, is taken
hostage by the criminal that is yellow fever. She was lucky
enough to survive but, the world was in riot, and Philadelphia
is the main topic.
When her grandfather is swept away, she is left alone in a
city torn to pieces not just by the disease itself, but by the
fear it delivers to the people. She was left with the walls of
her very life crumbling around her after a robbery that
destroyed her grandfather’s life. With the business screeching
to a halt, Matilda is left with nothing but the few living
scraps that barely living in her garden. The memories of her
bitter captain of a mother and her Saint Nicholas of a
grandfather flooded back to her and refused to flush away. With
yellow fever on a roll and no one having a cause or a cure,
yellow fever became a force to reckon with. On a morning in
early November the first frost of the year came in like a sign
from the heavens. With the curse of yellow fever broken, Matilda
returns to her mother and gets comfortable for the ride on the
road to recovery.
Although “Fever 1793”captures the plague to some extent,
nobody can recreate the blood curdling fear that came in the
yellow fever package better than someone who lived through it.
“Yellow Fever Attacks Philadelphia, 1793” gives a great view of
the unexpected epidemic, unlike “Fever 1793” it is written with
surreal accuracy. Beginning with an exceedingly large number of
residents in Philadelphia (about 55,000) at the time of the
outbreak, you could see how the plague could cause a dangerous
amount of danger and destruction. Without the cities knowledge,
their fair city was turning into a mosquitoes’ playground.
Adding to the chaos the Physicians of Philadelphia were
struggling to fit what seemed like a million puzzle pieces
together and the cities medical community found themselves
befuddled. Samuel Breck was met with the misfortune of settling
in Philadelphia shortly before he was given the distasteful
housewarming gift of his city in peril. Samuel was forced to
play a game a follow suit when his father fled to Bristol on the
Delaware. With the attack of this disease becoming a devastating
war, yellow fever was in its prime, and Philadelphia was hanging
on by a thread. Yellow fever had become a silent killer, but the
battle was about to end and Philadelphia would stand on top.
The destruction this memorable affliction boldly left its
mark on history. Philadelphia was abandoned. Samuel Breck had
opened his front door and answered to the fever. Breck luckily
escaped yellow fevers grasp and found that the disease was at
its peak, and the death toll was going up in hundreds. Breck
recalls the experience of his father’s neighbor “The attendants
on the dead stood in the pavement soliciting jobs”. On the cold
frosty morning November 9th 1793, a chilling northwest breeze
sailed through Philadelphia marking the first frost of the year
and the end of yellow fever.
To this day yellow fever still sends chills up the cities
spines as many people recall the misfortune that was brought
upon the now thriving city. “Fever 1793” by Laurie Halse
Anderson is an insightful and creative novel, featuring the
heroine of the story Matilda Cook who is caught in the middle of
the epidemic. Likewise “Yellow Fever Attacks Philadelphia, 1793”
by Samuel Breck is a nonfiction article with a unique view of
the fever from someone who was still a stranger to most in the
city. Thus they both showed how destructive yellow fever was
while also bringing in the interesting points of view only
fiction or nonfiction could have brought to the table.