Dr. Jil Muller on the History of Midwifery

‘In order to avoid repeating the errors of our history, midwifery probably needs to be academised today. The early modern period demonstrates that the secularisation of the midwifery profession enabled licences and examinations to be transferred from priests to doctors. However, the training of the women was not adapted. The main actor was overlooked. This mistake should be avoided today.’

On Saturday 19th October 2024, Dr. Jil Muller will give a talk on “The History of Midwifery” at the DAB-Fachsymposium ‘Akademisierung der Hebammenausbildung, Herausforderungen und Chancen’, organised by the Deutscher Akademikerinnenbund e.V. in Leipzig.

Her expertise on the history of medicine in a philosophical context and on the early modern period led her to consider the actual midwifery profession from the perspective of an individual seeking to prevent a repetition of historical events. In her presentation, Jil Muller will provide insights into the licensing and examination process in midwifery from the earliest documented sources in Antiquity until the end of the 18th century across Europe. However, as an expert in the early modern period, she will devote considerable attention to the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, elucidating how midwifery endured various crises, including the heresy problem, the conflict between the Church and the State in England, and the secularisation process in medicine.

Her recent publications and ongoing research demonstrate her considerable expertise and interest in this field of study:

“Humours, Passions, and Consciousness in Descartes’s Physiology: The Reconsideration through the Correspondence with Elisabeth,” in Andrea Strazzoni and Marco Sgarbi (eds.), Reading Descartes, Consciousness, Body, and Reasoning, Firenze University Press, 2023, 59-80 DOI: 36253/979-12-215-0169-8.05

“Ambroise Paré and René Descartes on sensation in amputated limbs,” in F. Baldassari (ed.), Descartes and Medicine, Problems, Responses and Survival of Cartesian Discipline, Brepols Publisher, 2023, p. 81-97.

Editor:

• Women and their Body, accepted for publication in DeGruyter, 2024.
• Automata, Cyborgs and Mutants: Eccentric Bodies from Humanism to Transhumanism, accepted for publication in Palgrave Macmillan, Palgrave Studies in Medieval and Early Modern Medicine, 2023.

New Voices Talk Series on Food, Plants, Remedies and Healing Practices: Women’s Ideas in the History of Medicine.

The preceding symposium of the DAB was held in Paderborn on 28 June 2024 in the principal conference room of Paderborn’s historic town hall. In keynote speeches on the topic of ‘Women. Think. Europe.’, attention was drawn to the fact that the history of Europe has largely overlooked the significant contributions of women to its cultural heritage. The guests were invited to participate in a thought-provoking discussion about potential solutions and the role of universities, associations and organisations in addressing this gap in recognition. The networking event was followed by a small reception and dinner.