What insights can you draw about late 18th-century race relations from "Fever"? Explain your answer.

Investigate the 1793 yellow fever outbreak in Philadelphia. Try and find answers to such questions as how many people died; how people of different races were affected; how did the outbreak affect business and daily life; how and why did the outbreak end. After answering these and other questions, hypothesize how this epidemic affected the development of Philadelphia.

In a 1996 interview, Wideman equated the 1793 yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia with the present-day AIDS epidemic, which was not a serious medical factor at the time he wrote "Fever." Do you find such a comparison apt? Why or why not? Conduct additional research as necessary to formulate your argument.

Research the Black Plague, which devastated Europe in the 1300s, killing perhaps as much as 25 percent of the population. Draw comparisons...