Should we talk about how eerie the description of the pandemic and its emergence is in the novel to what happened with Covid-19? I'll leave that up to y'all. Given the number of deaths in the novel compared to reality (so far anyway), it really puts things into perspective but at the same time it should worry us for the next wave of viruses that no doubt will become more common place.
The pandemic
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Number of replies: 22
In reply to Amanda DiPaolo O'Brien
Re: The pandemic
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I have to say that this book is my favourite of all the novels we have read over this course. It's parallels to today's society is so surreal that it makes me question whether James Bradley could see the future.
Both viruses started in China, Guangxi in the novel versus Hubei region. (191) In the novel, States respond late, and complaints are made they should have responded quicker. (192) This reflects accurate concerns from China and the USA in early 2020. The virus, AVRS (or Accute VIRAL Respiratory Syndrome), has an incubation period of 7 days which also means people were spreading the virus while being asymptomatic. (195) People began panic-buying and spreading moral panic throughout society. At least people in the novel were sensible and stocked on food and didn't associate their respiratory systems with toilet paper. But it is a novel so I suppose Bradley had the sense to make the society more reasonable. It will always remain a mystery why toilet paper was all the rage in the early stage of Covid-19! The pandemic required masks (and gloves, which we have not gotten to at this point, I assume because sanitizer works well), and people had the same fears of the world ending that they do today. Nobody knows really when the normal will come back and some believe this pandemic is the end of the human race as we know it. Censorship was huge with the pandemic in the novel. Accurate stats of cases weren't told at first and most media just displayed "hospitals and overflowing bodies in the streets." Li worried about his mum who was in China while he was in Australia and I can relate to his fears because I worry about my sister and her family. My sister lives in Germany with her two little girls and her husband, and she is a nurse. I stress myself out by seeing how far up the board Germany is compared to Canada with overall cases and wonder if she or her family have been affected because we do not talk often. Drastic measures are similar such as the use of police and military in the novel versus our society, but America is not killing people as they try to enter their cities compared to in the novel (that we know of). (210)
Both viruses started in China, Guangxi in the novel versus Hubei region. (191) In the novel, States respond late, and complaints are made they should have responded quicker. (192) This reflects accurate concerns from China and the USA in early 2020. The virus, AVRS (or Accute VIRAL Respiratory Syndrome), has an incubation period of 7 days which also means people were spreading the virus while being asymptomatic. (195) People began panic-buying and spreading moral panic throughout society. At least people in the novel were sensible and stocked on food and didn't associate their respiratory systems with toilet paper. But it is a novel so I suppose Bradley had the sense to make the society more reasonable. It will always remain a mystery why toilet paper was all the rage in the early stage of Covid-19! The pandemic required masks (and gloves, which we have not gotten to at this point, I assume because sanitizer works well), and people had the same fears of the world ending that they do today. Nobody knows really when the normal will come back and some believe this pandemic is the end of the human race as we know it. Censorship was huge with the pandemic in the novel. Accurate stats of cases weren't told at first and most media just displayed "hospitals and overflowing bodies in the streets." Li worried about his mum who was in China while he was in Australia and I can relate to his fears because I worry about my sister and her family. My sister lives in Germany with her two little girls and her husband, and she is a nurse. I stress myself out by seeing how far up the board Germany is compared to Canada with overall cases and wonder if she or her family have been affected because we do not talk often. Drastic measures are similar such as the use of police and military in the novel versus our society, but America is not killing people as they try to enter their cities compared to in the novel (that we know of). (210)
In reply to Jessie-Lynn Cross
Re: The pandemic
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I fully agree Jessie-Lynn! I was sort of surprised as well with how many real-world similarities were in this book. I think this kind of tells us that the pandemic was foreseeable or that the precautions and preparation that could have been done to prevent the extent to which the virus has spread were foreseeable. Many countries had pandemic plans in place but it really got down to how the governments imposed and carried out those plans.
I would just like to say though that the panic buying of toilet paper only occurred in western countries, I believe. Or panic buying anything actually. There were certainly no fights in the eastern part of the world over canned goods and toilet paper rolls. Which I think is interesting and brings up quite a few questions regarding consumerism and the position it holds in people's lives in different parts of the world.
I would just like to say though that the panic buying of toilet paper only occurred in western countries, I believe. Or panic buying anything actually. There were certainly no fights in the eastern part of the world over canned goods and toilet paper rolls. Which I think is interesting and brings up quite a few questions regarding consumerism and the position it holds in people's lives in different parts of the world.
In reply to Amanda DiPaolo O'Brien
Re: The pandemic
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It is extremely eerie how similar the book is to what is happening right now. Especially the fact that in both the book and in our time, the States have responded late and are blamed for not responding with swiftness and action (simply flick the tv channels to CNN and you will see so many examples of this). The virus in the book has an incubation period of 7 days, so people were spreading the virus without even realizing- we can relate this to the outbreak in NB. How many asymptomatic people have traveled around St. John or Fredericton spreading the virus without even realizing? Like Jessie-Lynn mentioned, the spread of moral panic is present in both the book and in real-time. All we got to do is go to grocery stores or outside- people are panicking and it is showing by the amounts of toilet paper, hand sanitizer and Clorox wipes that are being stock piled.
This book has been the easiest read of the semester and I think that it is because it is so relatable to what we are all experiencing right now.
In reply to Jodi McKay
Re: The pandemic
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I agree with you that it is eery how in both Clade and current society, governments have been late to the show in regard to pandemic prevention and health care. It makes you wonder if governments have just been oblivious to the very real threat of viruses or if they simply do not care. I find it even scarier to think about the melting ice caps in the arctic which are melting every day. Who knows what sort of sinister illnesses and viruses are frozen within the ice. When that melts will we have a better prevention method? Or will we once again be at the mercy of microscopic organisms?
In reply to Jodi McKay
Re: The pandemic
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Yes!
I agree with you, its so similar that the neglect of states and the consequences that have followed in the pandemic are scarily similar to those in this book. It reminds us that politicians are not professionals and don't always do "best practices" that would ultimately lead to a better outcome. Look at Canada and the US for example, now Canada is by no means in the best state but unlike the US, our politicians listened to specialists and the number of cases and deaths per capita is at a much lower rate than those of the US, proving that acting fast and listening to specialists is the best bet to making it through disasters.
I agree with you, its so similar that the neglect of states and the consequences that have followed in the pandemic are scarily similar to those in this book. It reminds us that politicians are not professionals and don't always do "best practices" that would ultimately lead to a better outcome. Look at Canada and the US for example, now Canada is by no means in the best state but unlike the US, our politicians listened to specialists and the number of cases and deaths per capita is at a much lower rate than those of the US, proving that acting fast and listening to specialists is the best bet to making it through disasters.
In reply to Jodi McKay
Re: The pandemic
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Hi.
It is unsettling to see the similarities in climate change not only wreaking havoc on the environment but also to see the similarities in responses to the pandemic by states. I think that as we continue to experience abnormal weather pattern that affect a whole range of natural events governments should have plans in place to effectively tackle these conditions. States had the option to change production methods and end deforestation but refused to heed the advice from climate scientists. States should now be prepared to mitigate the damages caused for their economic growth.
It is unsettling to see the similarities in climate change not only wreaking havoc on the environment but also to see the similarities in responses to the pandemic by states. I think that as we continue to experience abnormal weather pattern that affect a whole range of natural events governments should have plans in place to effectively tackle these conditions. States had the option to change production methods and end deforestation but refused to heed the advice from climate scientists. States should now be prepared to mitigate the damages caused for their economic growth.
In reply to Amanda DiPaolo O'Brien
Re: The pandemic
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I found it creepy how much the virus associated with COVID-19. Mass panic buying resulting in lack of resources, people wearing mask distancing themselves from others, a respiratory virus with a seven-day incubation period, failure to respond adequately, hospitals being filled, etc. My jaw actually dropped when they discussed the characteristics of the virus, and how similar it sounded to COVID, this is definitely scary when comparing it to the mass deaths portrayed in the novel. One part that I reflected on was the idea of the death toll becoming so high that "body pick up" became a thing, this is a very very scary thought to me, the idea that a virus could wipe out so many people that properly laying people to rest isn't even an option. Another thing I thought about was how the storms occurred before the virus, this freaked me out because when I reflect back to the beginning of COVID in NB (around March-April) climate change was heavily discussed in the media with climate strikes, Greta Thunberg gaining a following and social media heavily fighting for change. It seems like that discussion has almost completely disappeared, I will occasionally see a post or hear an activist discuss the risks of climate change, but before COVID, it was widely depicted that we needed to make a change then and there. Now it seems we are ignoring the obvious signs that the environment will retaliate. If COVID continues to progress and we continue to ignore the signs of climate change I wonder if we will have the same fate.
In reply to Emily Ashton
Re: The pandemic
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I agree with you about how scary the body removal service depicted in the book was and how close we are to that reality. In mass city centres like New York were the virus has hit the hardest, mass grave sites have been dug for the thousands of casualties. It is definitely extremely scary and the reason why we must all be so prudent in fighting off this virus.
In reply to Emily Ashton
Re: The pandemic
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I completely agree with you, Emily! I do want to agree with Paytra that we have seen the "body pick up" technique with COVID already. It just has been in countries where media doesn't cover as many stories worldwide. In Latin America countries like Colombia and Ecuador experienced panic from the people where individuals died at homes because of lack of access to health services and families panicking that the body had the virus not being able to afford burial services. So people recorded dead bodies just thrown out in the street, and no one wanting to take care of them. IT IS HORRIFIC. But it also makes you think about the disparities and how expensive dealing with covid is, which is alarming because poor populations are statistically more prone to get infected.
In reply to Emily Ashton
Re: The pandemic
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I totally agree with you Emily. This pandemic that we are facing is almost exact as the one portrayed in the novel we have read. I also agree with you on the fact that people have really put aside their activism during the pandemic, especially around climate change. I don't know if it's because there are limited protests being set out, but it concern's me that less and less people are posting about it and not as much information is being put out in the world as it did before the pandemic. It is a huge problem because climate change is unstoppable, even if we manage to slow it down eventually it is going to take control over our ecosystems. It is going to go the climate crisis is just going to evolve faster if we don't stop consuming as much as we do now. This is somewhat of a radical approach to the climate crisis and I'm not saying that it's not worth trying, because we can always extend our time on this earth and try to have a better outcome. In order to do so we have to drastically change our habits and ways of life to more sustainable options. I hope that this pandemic is an eye opener for everyone who haven't thought so, because the lack of supplies in stores is going to continue happening, but one day that's not gonna be because of people panic buying, but instead because the resources will be too low to sustain our heavy consumerism.
In reply to Emily Ashton
Re: The pandemic
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Hi Emily, I too was very stunned while reading and how much it related to COVID, it was definitely creepy to me too. You make a very important point though that since COVID, you hear significantly less in the media about climate change, and really, all other human rights issues, since the entire focus of the world right now is COVID. I hope the discussion does not disappear though, but great point that I did not think of.
In reply to Emily Ashton
Re: The pandemic
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I think there have been many environmental scientists to share that the cause for a pandemic and rise of new viruses in nature is due to climate change. In this was, the book makes sense in the sequence of science.
"Look at the origins of COVID reveals that other forces may be in play. In the past century we have escalated our demands upon nature, such that today, we are losing species at a rate unknown....another major cause of species loss is climate change, which can also change where animals and plants live and affect where diseases may occur. Historically, we have grown as a species in partnership with the plants and animals we live with. So, when we change the rules of the game by drastically changing the climate and life on earth, we have to expect that it will affect our health" (Harvard).
Through drastic changes in environment and climate, there is expected to be drastic changes in life on earth.
https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/c-change/subtopics/coronavirus-and-climate-change/
"Look at the origins of COVID reveals that other forces may be in play. In the past century we have escalated our demands upon nature, such that today, we are losing species at a rate unknown....another major cause of species loss is climate change, which can also change where animals and plants live and affect where diseases may occur. Historically, we have grown as a species in partnership with the plants and animals we live with. So, when we change the rules of the game by drastically changing the climate and life on earth, we have to expect that it will affect our health" (Harvard).
Through drastic changes in environment and climate, there is expected to be drastic changes in life on earth.
https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/c-change/subtopics/coronavirus-and-climate-change/
In reply to Emily Ashton
Re: The pandemic
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Hi Emily,
I definitely agree with you that climate change has taken a backseat throughout this pandemic. It is very strange to read a fiction novel that so accurately reflects the real world today. Whilst reading the novel, I got an anxious sense that the real world is not as different as it may seem and the earth may be closer to the conditions in Clade than we think. You also have very interesting observations to the news in March/April, which illuminates the rapid evolution of the news in 2020.
I definitely agree with you that climate change has taken a backseat throughout this pandemic. It is very strange to read a fiction novel that so accurately reflects the real world today. Whilst reading the novel, I got an anxious sense that the real world is not as different as it may seem and the earth may be closer to the conditions in Clade than we think. You also have very interesting observations to the news in March/April, which illuminates the rapid evolution of the news in 2020.
In reply to Amanda DiPaolo O'Brien
Re: The pandemic
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I echo the comments above. It was mind blowing reading about the pandemic in the book, it felt like the virus that was spoken off was actually COVID-19 instead. Is it a coincidence that you chose this book Dr. DiPaolo? This novel did a great job portraying human life experiences, to the most accurate level. Beyond the virus, it is so scary to think that other events in the book might be what's ahead of us in the real world if we do not change our ways.
In reply to Muchaneta Nyambuya
Re: The pandemic
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I like the idea you mentioned of human experience, despite the mass amounts of death and how normal it became to see bodies on the road, they still grieve for their loved ones. With the sims/echos or by how Li longs for her mother's return/safety, they feared for each other. I really liked how switching from characters allowed for different perceptions to be discussed.
In reply to Muchaneta Nyambuya
Re: The pandemic
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It is absolutely a coincidence. I had no idea that there was even a pandemic situation in Clade. In fact, I ordered it off amazon to give it a shot (read about 15 novels for this class and then narrowed it down) for the environment issues only. Did not know what I was getting!
In reply to Amanda DiPaolo O'Brien
Re: The pandemic
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I found it extremely eerie when I got to the part explaining the virus. It is so similar to Covid-19. The amount of similarities between both viruses was freaky to read but it was also nice to read something that each person in this class could relate too. We've all been living in fear for so long. The description of the panic-buying, the train being empty, beginning to see masks, people avoiding public, being quarantined, these are all things we saw happen not long ago. To me, it reminded me of the seriousness of the pandemic especially when we see the aftermath and the amount of people lost in the end before the vaccine comes out.
In reply to Emily Davis
Re: The pandemic
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Hi Emily,
I agree with you, and I think it's an important book to read in this time, especially with the second wave. With cases rising and consequent fear rising as well, I think highlighting these moments in Clade offers us some perspective. As you mentioned, we are reminded of the seriousness of the disease and I think that is really important right now.
I agree with you, and I think it's an important book to read in this time, especially with the second wave. With cases rising and consequent fear rising as well, I think highlighting these moments in Clade offers us some perspective. As you mentioned, we are reminded of the seriousness of the disease and I think that is really important right now.
In reply to Amanda DiPaolo O'Brien
Re: The pandemic
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The idea of viruses such as COVID becoming common place is one I wish we didn’t have to explore while still in the midst of a pandemic. I think the exponential increase in deaths is more closely related to government failure and individual irresponsibility than it is a reflection on the deadliness of the virus. Of course the virus is deadly and a real threat - but the facilitation of its spread by uninformed individuals and authorities unwilling to take responsibility is, in my opinion, what is driving the spread of COVID-19. We are put into perspective through Clade, however one of the few differences between the circumstances in Clade and real life are the number of deaths. The lack of initiative or protections from governments or corporations as shown in Clade has been proven to be true throughout the COVID pandemic as well.
In reply to Amanda DiPaolo O'Brien
Re: The pandemic
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Something that caught my attention in the pandemic section of the novel was the reliance on media, censorship, and media blackouts. I think that this is interesting because even in our pandemic, we are all relying on news sources and government updates transmitted online. However, what happens to those without access to these sources? We see this with Li and her mother, this inability to get in touch with one another is scary and problematic. I have not been in this situation with any of my loved ones, but I do know of people who have experienced similar situations. And so, not only is our ability to hear accurate information from the proper authorities as important as ever, but the importance of communicating with loved ones has also changed. It is interesting to see this shifting reliance on technology. Moreover, I think that it stresses the importance of cross-border communications and the need for states to work together to ensure this in the right to freedom of expression and perhaps online assembly.
In reply to Nicole Leary
Re: The pandemic
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That is an interesting point Nicole, its certainly applicable to our current situation where we are truly depending on social media and news sources to not only get information and updates from the governments but it is also how we've been able to stay in touch with our loved ones all over. I have also not experienced what Li and her mother did but reading that part of the book made it so real that I could imagine myself in that situation.
That's a good point on cross-border communications between states, I do think it would be a difficult one though because many states just have different perspectives to freedom of expression and such.
That's a good point on cross-border communications between states, I do think it would be a difficult one though because many states just have different perspectives to freedom of expression and such.
In reply to Amanda DiPaolo O'Brien
Re: The pandemic
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I agree that the novel's description is creepily similar to our current predicament with COVID 19. The incubation period, the panic buying that resulted, hospitals being full and inadequate preparation, the fear and panic associated with the virus, etc. And while the number of deaths have not reached the levels present in the novel the numbers continue to rise. The novel definitely caused my anxiety to go up as more of more novel became reality