Essay: Slavoj Zizek’s Pandemic!: The Deeper Sociological Meanings of COVID-19

Slavoj Zizek is a Slovenian philosopher and the author of Pandemic!: COVID-19 Shakes the World. In his book, he uncovers the deeper sociological meanings of the ongoing pandemic. He analyzes the consequences of the pandemic and the new form of communism that has become present.
Zizek uses the term “war Communism” to define the current status of our world in the pandemic. He provides a definition with some context: “This is not a utopian Communist vision, it is a Communism imposed by the necessities of bare survival. It is unfortunately a version of what, in the Soviet Union in 1918, was called ‘war Communism’” (Zizek, 2020, pg. 92). Zizek emphasizes that in order to survive, isolation is not enough. He provides the scenario that “basic public services will have to continue functioning: electricity and water, food and medicine will have to continue being available. We will soon need a list of those who have recovered and are, at least for some time, immune so that they can be mobilized for the urgent public work” (Zizek, 2020, pg. 92). The scenario Zizek provides emphasizes the need for basic public services. These services are essential for basic survival in this pandemic. An example Zizek gives of how war Communism has become present today was when he presented the headline “Trump announces proposal to take over private sector.” Zizek writes about how he was mocked for suggesting that a new form of Communism would help lead the way out of this pandemic, only for a headline that no one could have imagined prior to the pandemic to ever be seen. He also compares Trump and Obama, as Trump “limit the freedom of private enterprises and forced them to produce what was needed to fight against the coronavirus”, then goes on to say that those who are right-wing would be enraged if Obama did the same“, claiming that he was using the health crisis as an excuse to introduce Communism to the US” (Zizke, 2020, pg. 93).
Core, semi-periphery, and periphery countries have been affected by the pandemic in terms of how they are surviving and producing. According to Immanuel Wallerstein’s book World-Systems Analysis: An Introduction, he defined core and periphery by stating: “Some countries were stronger economically than others (the core) and were therefore able to trade on terms that allowed surplus-value to flow from the weaker countries (the periphery) to the core” (Wallerstein, 2006, pg. 12). While defining core and periphery in this quote, he also defines the process of unequal exchange. He then clarifies that semi-peripheral states are a “near even mix of core-like and peripheral products” (Wallerstein, 2006, pg. 28).
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has become a world-systemic social problem, in aspects such as public health, political, economic, and ideological. According to an iPolitics article, the COVID-19 outbreak has created consequences in the choices humans make in society, being on “the environment, the world economy, and the distribution of wealth”. (Samuel Freeman, 2020). Social issues have been created, with people claiming they have the freedom to not wear a mask, risking themselves and others to contracting the virus. This social issue has also created a public health threat, as multiple people can be put at risk. Political policies have been put in place to help reduce the spread of the virus, while also influencing how citizens react to the pandemic. The economy is experiencing a slowdown, as many have lost their jobs and have become unemployed, impacting their income. In ideological aspects, political policies have been changed to help the economy, such as easing restrictions that were previously enforced.
Due to the pandemic, public health has been obviously threatened, with many people still carelessly going out when they have been encouraged to stay home to help prevent the spread of the virus. A mask mandate was placed in multiple places all over the world to help protect others and slow the spread. Some people still believe that the virus is a hoax, and that there is nothing to worry about, and as a result they refuse to wear a mask when they leave their house and enter areas that are more crowded, or places that have a mask mandate in place. Some people even argue that they have the freedom to not wear a mask, whether or not it matters that other people are at risk. This carelessness in some people has led to an increase in positive cases, ultimately leading to the deaths of many more people. Healthcare systems have been overwhelmed, with ICU’s prioritizing those with COVID-19 and reaching full capacity of patients, and even having to turn away incoming patients. Some hospitals have had to turn their waiting room into an area where they can treat their overflowing patients. Healthcare workers and essential workers are risking their lives by still returning to work in the midst of a global pandemic, as they are potentially exposing themselves to other people who may have the virus.
COVID-19 has become an extraordinarily relevant political topic. From the online article “Social, Political, Economic, and Psychological Consequences of the COVID-19 Pandemic”, it reads: “During crises, citizens expect governments to take bold actions, including some that are typically carried out in the private sector. How local, state, and federal governments responded to the pandemic may influence elections, from who engages politically, who registers to vote, who votes, or how they vote” (Russell Sage Foundation, 2020). Citizens have been influenced by state or government officials, and in how they are handling the pandemic. In addition to this influence, based on how people see the government respond and perform in the pandemic, trust in institutions may change in people (Russell Sage Foundation, 2020). Even the government policies that have been enforced to help control COVID-19 are significantly influenced by political pressures, altering the state of the pandemic (Tisdell, 2020). As defined in Wallerstein’s book, the ecological unequal exchange theory is put in place today. An example can be found in the article titled “The politics of COVID-19 results in pandemic winners and losers” from The Conversation. The article writes about the losers being those that have suffered from the political decisions made in the pandemic. A number of the “losers” are families that belong to racialized communities, those that have lost their jobs, and those who have had no improvements in their working conditions, such as staff working in nursing homes. The “winners” are “those in unionized, secure and professional jobs, some of whom continued to earn employment income even when little work was demanded of them” (Klassen, 2020). The unequal exchange presented in the article is those who are suffering severe losses and are given no new benefits, and those who are given more benefits and have not lost much, in terms of work.
COVID-19 has severely impacted the global economy. According to the online article “Economic Consequences of the COVID-19 Outbreak: the Need for Epidemic Preparedness” from Frontiers in Public Health, it describes some of the consequences that have been placed on the economy due to the pandemic: “Significant reductions in income, a rise in unemployment, and disruptions in the transportation, service, and manufacturing industries are among the consequences of the disease mitigation measures that have been implemented in many countries” (Pak, Adegboye, Adekunle, Rahman, McBryde, Eisen, 2020). The pandemic has created an increase in unemployment, leading to reduced productivity and a slowdown in manufacturing. An example from the same article mentions China, a semi-peripheral country, and how their production has decreased significantly, by more than 54%. In addition to reduced manufacturing, consumers have more recently adapted to a different spending behavior, due to possible lower incomes. Businesses such as restaurants and those in the entertainment industry have been affected greatly as well. Restaurants have either had to shut down, close indefinitely, or close indoor dining and open outdoor dining and reduce capacity. Those in the entertainment industry currently cannot do their job or find great difficulty in doing so, which is to perform in front of others. According to the article “Economic, social and political issues raised by the COVID-19 pandemic”, it emphasizes that another issue in the economy is the predicted recovery from the pandemic. The vaccine will need mass production, as it is currently being prioritized to healthcare workers. Inequalities in supply and demand will raise a problem, as it will be hard to sustain economic activity (supply) and many will be hesitant to engage in activities that were safe prior to the pandemic (demand), such as collective transport (Tisdell, 2020).
COVID-19 has created an impact in ideological aspects. According to various lecture slides provided by Professor Mueller, ideology is the “coherent set of ideas that inform how you go about your life, especially how you politically-strategize and make demands for socio-political change” (Mueller, 2021). In other words, it is a system of ideas formed around the basis of economic or political theory. Also from Tisdell’s article, it reads: “As infections and the death rate rose, political pressure to impose social restrictions to limit the occurrence of the disease mounted. However, political pressure subsequently intensified to ease the restrictions in order to reduce the economic cost of the virus” (Tisdell, 2020). The choices the government made to control COVID-19 were influenced by political pressures. They were changed accordingly, first with the goal to help keep people safe from the virus, but ultimately changing to help increase economic activity once again. These changes prioritize the economy over the safety of the people. From an online article from Psychology Today titled “The Coronavirus and Political ideology”, it mentions the economic shutdown, and how conservatives are reacting and downplaying the threat the virus holds (Barker, Marietta, 2020). The reason being that in conservative views, it is seen as one threat balanced against another threat. An economic threat is also seen as a defense threat, as conservatives pay more attention to comparative advantage, which is the ability to carry out a particular economic activity more efficiently than another activity (Oxford).
The COVID-19 pandemic has created many issues in becoming a world-systemic social problem, in aspects such as public health, political, economical, and ideological.