What did people believe about the influence of the stars on peoples lives during Elizabethan times?
During Elizabethan times people believed that the stars, planets and signs of the zodiac were linked to various parts of their bodies. Things that happened in the universe, which were called the “macrocosm” were believed to happen on a smaller scale in the human body which were called the “microcosm”. The body was also thought to contain four fluids they called “humours”. These were black bile, phlegm, blood and cholor. A persons temperament was thought to depend on the way these “humours” were mixed. Most people were thought to have one humour that was more dominant than the others. Illness and mental disorders were blamed on an imbalance of the humours e.g, depression was thought to be caused by an excess of black bile.
