Science as empiricism : hahnemann's three basic tenets

- On the cutting edge of extinction : how the quest for modernity led to the erosion of identity in american homeopathy from 1865-Craig Repasz (Craig Repasz)

Hahnemann

Hahnemann portrayed old school heroic medicine as an enemy. This, however, served a function. From homeopathy's start, an external enemy served to unify and solidify the burgeoning new school. The attacks against heroic medicine and the counter-attacks were zealous and laden with rhetoric. It became a war of words and epitaphs that can be confusing if interpreted out of the historical context.
 Inherent in the terms orthodox, regular, rational and even allopathic-which was originally a derogatory termed coined by Hahnemann himself-and unorthodox, irregular, empirical and sects, lie political connotations, as well as social and historical constructs that have changed over time. To avoid confusion, the terms for medical schools of thought in this essay have been based on the therapies used, i.e. , heroic, homeopathic, botanical, eclectic, biomedical, etc. In order to stay true to the sources, the term "old school" medicine will be used for heroic medicine that was the prominent form from the late 18th to early 19th centuries; "allopathic" will be used during the latter part of the 19th century, according to the source document.