问答题
(61)In primitive societies sick people had to rely on medicine men and witch doctors. Some people still rely on them. (62)It was believed that a person was sick because he had been attacked by evil spirits. (63)The witch doctor’s job was to drive off these spirits.
His method involved a combination of three methods, the first of which was religious. He chanted magic words and used good luck charms which he thought had power over the evil spirits that supposedly had entered the patient’s body. Secondly, he deliberately fed the patient mixtures, which were often dirty and disgusting to make the evil spirits so uncomfortable that they would gladly run away and so enable the patient to get well.
The third method was to give the patient medicines prepared from certain plants and herbs similar in shape or texture to the various organs of the body. (64)From out point of view, this was the only method that had any value. (65)Modern scientific study has shown that some of these remedies’ had real usefulness in curing sickness, or at least in relieving pain, but not for the reasons advanced by the witch doctor.