Vol. 13 Issue 2

Washington University Review of Health Spring 2020
stage of local transmission, confirmed
cases can be only the tip of
an iceberg. Even though they are
successfully contained, the virus
can go undetected. On February 27,
there were only 15 cases in the
United States.
On the same day, displaying a chart
indicating the United States preparedness
for a pandemic, President
Trump claimed, “we’re prepared like
we have never before…one day —it’s
like a miracle—it will disappear”
(The White House 2020).
Besides showing underestimation
and optimism, his commentary
represents a sense of exceptionalism
and superiority. But such a belief
will not automatically grant the
country immunity to an infectious
disease.
Science writer Ed Yong commented,“And
I do wonder if that propensity
to think of [the U.S.] as being
truly exceptional, that slight hubris,
left it more unprepared than it
needed to be” (Gross, 2020).
Narratives around the spread of
contagion are susceptible to war-related
diction and metaphors, and
COVID-19 is not an exception. In
the New York Times article, “Its
Coronavirus Cases Dwindling,
China Turns Focus Outward,” words
such as “blitz,” “diplomatic offensive,”
“battleground” and “combat”
paint the offering of medical
assistance to other countries as
highly aggressive and the pandemic
as conflict between nations and
ideologies (Myers and Robin 2020).
But in reality, the pandemic is a
global phenomenon, and SARS-
CoV-2 is a virulent natural agent
that is trying to survive and reproduce
but is dangerous to human
health. Similar portrayal, however,
undermines our sense of solidarity
as human beings. Moreover, war
metaphor also abets irrational and
ignorant behaviors. Defying
experts’ warnings to attend large
gatherings and downplaying
physiological vulnerabilities are
considered as “brave” actions, while
staying at home is an “ignoble
retreat.” A woman posted a video of
an evening gathering on St. Patrick’s
Day and chose the caption
“Downtown Nashville is undefeated.”
Similar metaphors of terrorism
exacerbate such ignorant bravado.
As an inadequate metaphor, terrorism
shares nothing in common with
COVID-19 except both evoking fear
and mistrust. The purpose of
terrorism is creating terror. Since
9/11, refusing to “live in fear” and
carrying on as normal have become
essential parts of “American
Resilience” (Loofbourow 2020).
However, the virus is not a manmade
threat, but a natural one. It is
not sentient and cares nothing
about the emotions of human hosts,
only their availability. Patriotic
bravery evoked by declaring a war
against this “invisible enemy” will
not help in a pandemic but feeds
into ignorance and irrationality.
COVID-19 is also highly politicized,
both domestically and internationally.
“…when it comes time to talk
about the pandemics… you gotta get
out of politics,” said President
Trump in the meeting on Feb. 27
(The White House 2020).
But he did not get out himself: he
expressed that Democrats were only
busying on impeachment and
exaggerating the severity of the
virus. Aided by media coverage, the
pandemic quickly took on political
overtones. Multiple surveys have
found a partisan divide in opinions
about the severity and response to
the pandemic. An ongoing analysis
of the partisan politics of COVID-19
reveals significant differences in
behaviors and attitudes between
self-identified Republicans and
Democrats. The latter are more
likely to wash hands more, avoid
gatherings and agree that there is
not enough testing (Pepinsky, 2020).
Partisanship not only influences
individual behaviors but also state
measures according to the affiliation
of the governor. A working research
by Adolph et al. (2020) found that
Republican governors were generally
less likely to execute strict
restrictions. Strict measures are
associated with certain political
beliefs and ideologies, making
people reluctant to take necessary
actions or follow safety instructions.
These ideas, thus, become as
dangerous as the virus itself.
Conclusion
In “Virus as Metaphor” (2020),
Buruma wrote, “Nationalism should
have no place in medical discourse.
And medical language should never
be applied to politics. Coronavirus
isn’t Chinese or foreign; it is global.”
The pandemic is a conflict between
humanity and nature, not a battle
between countries, cultures or
ideologies. In front of nature, we
share more than we differ. We have
all witnessed hubris and sluggishness,
experienced loneliness,
anxiety and grief. But we have also
seen devotion, creativity and love.
Crisis brings out the worst of us and
the best of us.
Just as Yong said in the interview,
“The periods of great social upheaval
carry with them great risk and
tragedy, but also great potential.”
(Gross 2020)
In his speech on European Conference
of Science Journalists, Oliver
Lehmann (2015) said, “The role of
journalists in this situation? A voice
of reason, not a scream of excitement.”
Media should be more aware of its
power and influence on the public
and deliver truthful information. On
Fresh Air (2020), Gross and Yong
used the word “take off” rather than
“originate” when mentioning China
and SARS-CoV-2. The surprising
subtlety of words shows the little
possibility of refraining from
“THE PERIODS
OF GREAT SOCIAL
UPHEAVAL CARRY
WITH THEM GREAT
RISK AND
TRAGEDY, BUT
ALSO GREAT
POTENTIAL.”
metaphoric thinking, but it also
demonstrates that resistance can be
achieved. For us, as the audience,
the ability to reflect and discern is
the only way we can manage the
spread of the metaphorical virus,
rather than letting it control us.
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