ABSTRACT
This chapter illustrates how physicians directly argued that it was impossible to understand poison as either a universal or a particular phenomenon without understanding both at the same time. It shows how physicians subsequently reshaped toxicological works to reflect this multifaceted view of poison by crafting a new conception of venenum defined dually: one axiomatically by its universal ability to harm the human body, another by emphasizing its various classes and properties. The chapter focuses on poison treatises from the second half of the sixteenth century and how they distinctly diverged from earlier medical works and established a new trajectory for toxicology. It considers how physicians remarked on the confusion between new Latin formulations of venenum and the Greek pharmakon, particularly how their Latin term for poison encompassed a narrower definition than its Greek counterpart. The chapter examines physicians' efforts specifically within literature on poison to carefully delineate poison, venom, putrefactive processes, and the nature of diseases caused by poison.
