These days, most people hearing the name “John Snow” will think of the character Jon Snow from HBO’s Game of Thrones, a hugely successful series based on the books by George R. R. Martin. Many of the 6 million+ viewers of this fantasy series may not know that there was another John Snow, perhaps one without the coal-black curls and swarthy good looks, but a man who changed the world of medicine and saved millions of lives. What does a fictional hero who wields a magical sword to destroy the undead atop a 700-foot wall of ice have to do with a Victorian-era physician who wielded nothing heavier than a fountain pen as he collected thousands of data points in a 1-square-mile neighborhood of London? The answer may surprise you!
Meanwhile, the fictional Jon Snow faces similar struggles (albeit having perhaps less of an impact on the world’s health, but that could be debated). As we will see, his fictional struggles serve as an analogy to John Snow’s, and in some ways, to the experiences of any scientist on the cutting edge of discovery. [WARNING: There are some spoilers!]
John Snow, the father of epidemiology, was the oldest son of a poor family of nine living in York, UK, where his neighborhood was threatened by frequent floods. Jon Snow wasn’t poor - he was an older (albeit illegitimate) child of the ruling family of Winterfell - but his upbringing had its challenges. Being an older brother can bring out the best in a young man destined for greatness!
At the age of 14, John Snow, the son of a poor laborer, travelled hundreds of miles to become apprenticed to a surgeon. After only a few years of apprenticeship, he managed to be admitted to medical school and become a physician in his own right in only a few years, an incredible feat for a young man from a poor family with no formal education past the age of 14. Also 14, Jon Snow, bastard son of the Lord of a bleak and bitterly cold kingdom, decides to join the Night’s Watch at the Wall, a military outpost hundreds of miles from his home. Like epic heroes, their destinies begin with a voyage from the known into the mysteries of the unknown.
John Snow, a physician committed to solving the enigma of cholera, abandoned the safety and security of the laboratory and clinic to conduct research in the poorest areas of London. There he sought out and interviewed inhabitants of the Soho neighborhoods being ravaged by a cholera outbreak that would kill over 1:10 of the residents in just a week. Jon Snow, a well-respected member of the Night’s Watch, left the safety of the military outpost to venture into dangerous territory, living amongst the “wildling” inhabitants in an effort to learn more about recent events he believes are a threat to the entire country. To help the people, you must live with the people (and to defeat your enemy, you must know him).
John Snow, working in a medical field that had yet to discover the germ theory of disease, was skeptical of the accepted theory that disease was spread by polluted air from swamps or graveyards. He began to doubt this theory when he treated patients with cholera far from swamps or graveyards: coal miners working deep underground. His studies led him to believe that cholera had a microbial source, most likely stemming from drinking water contaminated with fecal matter. His ideas were rejected by his peers, considered distasteful and even inflammatory. Even after he had demonstrated his theories through field work, resulting in the closing of one contaminated well, local government officials denied the connection to sewage contamination and reopened the well. It took decades for the establishment to accept his theory fact. Jon Snow also had theories that were questioned and rejected. One of those theories was that the White Walkers, mysterious killers from beyond the realm that most had relegated to myth, were in fact real and coming to destroy the kingdom were ignored and rejected, even in the face of undeniable evidence. It seems that even in the face of facts, the ruling administrators will still fight change.
At the young age of 17, John Snow became a vegetarian and took up the “temperance cause,” a movement espousing complete abstinence from alcohol and a strict moral code. He followed these tenets until his death, lived plainly, and remained unmarried. Jon Snow’s decision to join the Night’s Watch also required that he live under a strict code of conduct, separated from family and friends, never marrying, and a lifetime of self-denial of most of life’s comforts. Who has time for worldly temptations when there are greater challenges ahead?
John Snow’s life of discovery and invention ended at his desk, writing a treatise on anesthetics. Pen in hand, Snow suffered a severe stroke and died quickly at the age of 45, to be mourned by his close friends in a simple ceremony. Jon Snow (at least as far as we know) also died a young man. While his death was markedly different, Jon Snow, too, was mourned only by a small number of close friends. While we still do not know the outcome of Jon Snow’s death, the now-revered physician Snow would be lauded and celebrated a century later for his pioneering work in field he created, epidemiology. Death is ultimately the great equalizers (unless you become undead, in which case… well, we shall see).
John Snow may have never held a sword in his hand, but he did his part in defending his nation. Not only did he conduct research that led to safe dosages of anesthetic, he became the leading anesthesiologist of his time, administering obstetric anesthetic to Queen Victoria herself during the birth of her two youngest children. His indefatigable work in proving his theory of a microbial origin of cholera in contaminated water, he helped protect the United Kingdom from the cholera pandemics that swept the globe. Fighting a different enemy, Jon Snow excelled both with a sword and as a leader. He quickly rose through the ranks of the Night’s Watch, keeping his colleagues safe while never abandoning his pursuit of the mysterious White Walkers. Focus and determination, alongside a heavy dose of talent, is an excellent combination for greatness.