Source: Cato Institute
by Chelsea Follett
“Scarlet fever is prominently featured in the plots of many old books, such as Frankenstein, Little Women, The Velveteen Rabbit, and Little House on the Prairie. The disease is described in Anna Karenina as an inevitable part of life. Scarlet fever’s prominence in fiction makes sense, given that many writers once had real-life experience with the illness. Little Women author Louisa May Alcott’s sister died from it at age 22. Yet scarlet fever, a scourge that has caused millions of deaths throughout history and that was once described as ‘agonizing’ and ‘diabolical,’ is now a mild illness.” (06/27/25)
https://www.cato.org/commentary/why-we-dont-worry-about-scarlet-fever-anymore