Pain, according to the texts, is an unpleasant perception, a sad affection or a distressing feeling. We know how to recognize it when we experience it, but how can we define it precisely? Some physicians of the time felt that this was an impossible task. They nonetheless attempted to name the various painful sensations using an abundant lexicon.
In 17th-century writings, physical pain is often distinguished from sadness, or moral pain, which is a general feeling that involves the whole individual. However, the distinction between the two is not entirely clear or systematic. And physicians note that physical pain itself usually causes a state of sadness.