Body Care and Soul Care : A Typology of the Herbs in the Medecinal Recipes of the Autobiographical Work of the Breton Peasant Julien Godest
Résumé
Knowledge in popular medicine is generally borne by oral tradition and access to written sources is rarely possible. The presence of a wide range of herbal remedies in the literary work of the self-taught Breton peasant Julien Godest (Plougonver 1849 – Callac 1932), written in Breton language around 1905 under the title Envorennou ar barz Juluen Godest (Bard Julian Godest's Memories) is therefore all the more precious a document as it is unusual. The object of this article is to establish a typology of these medicinal remedies. The focus will be on what types of plants are used, what the wild and domestic plant ratio is, which parts of the plants (the flower, the leaf, the bark, the fruit...), what methods of preparation (raw, decoction, blend, poultice, mixture, etc.) and what methods of administration are used, what diseases are treated by these plants (short-term or chronic diseases, parasitical illnesses, wounds, etc.) Through this typology we will also try to understand what relationship this peasant had with nature, with his close environment, and what his conception of body care in connection with soul care was, within the framework of his Christian beliefs in the organization of the world.