SUMMARY
Recent research in the history of the idea of care prior to current feminist literature sheds new light on pharmaceutical care viewed as the point of identity for the profession of pharmacy. This article explores several ideas about care: (a) care as worry and concern; (b) care as attention; (c) the historic clash between care as burden and care as attentive devotion; (d) the nature of attention, a moral component of care; and (e) the modem conflict between taking care of and caring about patients. The explanation incorporates a number of stories, from an ancient myth of Care to modem vignettes of pharmacists. The author indicates some ethical implications for pharmacy ethics and suggests an agenda for future inquiry.