Emotionality of COVID-19. Now and After: The War Against a Virus

Similarly to the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11 of 2001, a foundational event that marked the turn of the century, the recent virus outbreak in Wuhan, China resonates heavily in the social imaginary of West. Both events have differences and of course commonalities. 9/11 epitomizes the struggle of Western civilization against an invisible enemy, terrorism, while now the target is a virus. Both emulate the doctrine of living with the enemy inside. Another commonality rests on the fact the same transport means that facilitate the state of emergency are paradoxically and at the same time mainly victims. Based on the invitation of well-renowned experts coming from four continents, the present book discusses critically the effects of COVID-19 as well as the global pandemic in society. To some extent, experts and colleagues of all pundits energetically emphasize the economic crisis of COVID-19 overlooking the durable effects in the societal background. This book intends to fill the gap giving a fresh insight which explains the role of social distancing and the lockdown in a new emerging society. Although chapters can be read separately, they are finely grounded into a common argumentation, as the pandemic affirms not only the geopolitical tensions of what Scambler dubbed as a fractured society but also starts a feudalization process where the Spectacle of Death prevails.