Who was Syphilis?

Question

Who was Syphilis?

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Examining the question: 'Who was Syphilis?' along with the four answer choices, we assess each option for historical accuracy.
Option 1: 'A famously debauched Roman emperor' — This claim is incorrect. There is no historical or scholarly consensus identifying Syphilis with any Roman emperor, debauched or otherwise; the name does not originate from an emperor.
Option 2: 'A fictional shepherd boy' — This is the historically recognized origin. Syphilis was named after Syphilus, a fictional shepherd boy in the Latin poem by Fracastoro, used to dramatize the disease’s appearance in Europe after contact with the New World.
Option 3: 'A Greek war hero' — This is inaccurate. There is no Greek war hero named Syphilis tied to the naming of the disease, and the mythic or legendary associations for this disease’s name do not involve a Greek hero.
Option 4: 'A daughter of Persephone' — This is also incorrect. Persephone’s daughters in myth do not bear the name associated with the disease, and there is no mythic lineage connecting Syphilis to Persephone's offspring.
In summary, the second option aligns with the established historical etymology of the term 'syphilis' as derived from the fictional shepherd boy Syphilus in Fracastoro’s work, while the other options contradict that origin or rely on unrelated myths and figures.

hk_264_120258_248438 Chapter 13 Self Test: Sexually Transmitted Infections

Who was Syphilis?

View Explanation

Log in for full answers

Similar Questions

Who was Syphilis?

Dionysus was the Greek god of fertility, wine, and revelry.

Dionysus was the Greek god of fertility, wine, and revelry.

Which god or goddess gave Penelope the idea about the archery contest?

Who are Dionysus’ mother and father?

Why did the two sons of Atreus, Menelaos and Agamemnon, and Odysseus abandon Philoctetes on Lemnos?

Neoptolemos’ father is

More Practical Tools for International Students

Exam Browser Assistant

Stylized Writing Assistant

Plagiarism Checker Assistant

Citation Assistant

In-Class Translation Assistant

Class Notes Assistant

Quiz Search Assistant

Past Exam Questions by School

Smart Practice Assistant

Adaptive Practice

Making Your Study Simpler