Sir William Osler's life in medical education. A critical re-evaluation of his moral philosophies, his teaching practices and the construction of a legend

Sir William Osler was an acclaimed innovative teacher who integrated the newly emerging sciences into a reinvigorated American medical curriculum. He became a legend, was portrayed as the “greatest physician of history,” and represented as a virtue ethicist and exemplary medical humanist. Such praise invited a systematic reappraisal of Osler’s life, his personal attributes and the originality of his contributions to medical education. This thesis presents an intellectual biographic analysis of Osler’s life in medical education and establishes a contemporary, critical appreciation of his attributes and his contributions to medicine that resets the determination of his place in history.