Paul Virilio argues that “A society that unthinkingly privileges the present real-time, to the detriment of past and future, also privileges accidents.” Further, he argues that if proof was ever needed, one has to realize that the anxiety has intensified over time, resulting in significant risks far from how society promotes its industries. One of the considerable risks in modern-day is the emergence of COVID-19 and its effect on the people and the global economy.
Shapin, in his article COVID and Community, shows that in the 21st century, there are channels through which the contagion spreads, and COVID-19’s outbreak has been made different from all other outbreaks in man’s history. Borrowing from this understanding established by Shapin, the sentiments by Virilio become a reality since, in his argument, Virilio shows that how an accident is exposed is subject to the enigmas found in modern progress.
The signs of progress made by mankind in his search for a better world have brought various risks that position man to many forms of danger, all of which can be said to be man-made. What is considered a catastrophe, either artificial or natural, comes from a chain of reactions that are fundamental in how short or long-term tragedies occur and have been the case throughout man’s existence. Virilio further argues that before any chain event takes place, resulting in a fateful catastrophe, people have to ask themselves whether what has come to pass is appropriate.
Shapin, through his article, clearly shows that contagious diseases have always been with mankind throughout history, and since COVID-19 is a social disease, how people kiss, touch and embrace have greatly contributed to its spread. COVID-19, therefore, has become a new kind of accident since how the disease has spread has been subject to mankind’s social behaviors, and this makes the effects associated with the pandemic not a matter of sheer luck.
History plays a significant role in how people come face-to-face with the challenges they face. As Virilio illustrates, the collision of events is simultaneous regardless of time lapses and distances once their interpretation becomes necessary. Shapin shows that with COVID-19 being considered a Chinese virus, history shows the smallpox attacks in San Francisco were also associated with the Chinese migration in 1807. What Virilio argues about history becomes apparent as the spread of the pandemic, despite relying on the social behavior of man, can be traced back to the Chinese people.
History also plays a significant role in the spread of COVID-19 since as long as man migrates between places, he makes it possible for what harms him in one region of the world to harm another man in another part of the world. Therefore, Virilio’s conception of accident comes into play in the spread of the pandemic since man’s tendency to travel between places allows diseases to spread between any two regions. The power of man’s social behavior has been critical in how the ultimate power of COVID-19 has affected mankind.