Reading The Contagion: An Observation Of American Novels in The Light Of Corona Pandemic

Yıl 2026, Cilt: 16 Sayı: 31, 73 - 91, 19.01.2026

Erden El , Sırma Arslan

https://doi.org/10.33207/trkede.1640701

Öz

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in millions of deaths worldwide, reshaping daily life and severely diminishing living standards. Beyond its immediate health effects, the virus has generated global fear, enforced lockdowns and isolation, and provoked debates on its origins that often gave rise to xenophobic discourses. While these outcomes might initially appear unprecedented, they strongly resonate with what Priscilla Wald defines as the outbreak narrative, a cultural and literary pattern that recounts the emergence, spread, and containment of contagious diseases. Twentieth-century American fiction offers numerous instances of such narratives, anticipating themes of terror, social disruption, and otherness that have resurfaced in the era of COVID-19. By examining these literary precedents, this article explores how twentieth-century outbreak narratives help illuminate the cultural logic of pandemics and asks a central question: what can literature teach readers about the ongoing experience of contagion? In doing so, the study identifies striking parallels between fictional representations of disease and the lived realities of the coronavirus pandemic.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Pandemic , COVID-19 , the outbreak narrative , the twentieth century fiction , human interdependency

Salgını Okumak: Amerikan Romanlarının Corona Pandemisi Işığında İncelenmesi

Öz

Koronavirüs (COVID-19) pandemisi dünya genelinde milyonlarca insanın ölümüne yol açmış, günlük yaşamı köklü bir biçimde dönüştürmüş ve yaşam standartlarını ciddi ölçüde düşürmüştür. Sağlık üzerindeki doğrudan etkilerinin ötesinde, bu virüs küresel ölçekte korku yaratmış, kapanma ve izolasyonu zorunlu kılmış ve kökenine dair tartışmalar yoluyla sıklıkla yabancı düşmanı söylemlere zemin hazırlamıştır. Bu sonuçlar ilk bakışta eşi benzeri görülmemiş gibi görünse de, Priscilla Wald’ın salgın anlatısı olarak tanımladığı, bulaşıcı hastalıkların ortaya çıkışını, yayılışını ve kontrol altına alınışını konu edinen kültürel ve edebi örüntüyle güçlü bir biçimde örtüşmektedir. Yirminci yüzyıl Amerikan edebiyatı, terör, toplumsal çözülme ve ötekileştirme gibi temaları işleyen bu tür anlatılara pek çok örnek sunar; bu temalar COVID-19 döneminde yeniden gün yüzüne çıkmıştır. Bu makale, söz konusu edebî öncülleri inceleyerek yirminci yüzyılın salgın anlatılarının pandemilerin kültürel mantığını nasıl aydınlattığını incelemekte ve şu temel soruyu sormaktadır: Edebiyat, okurlara salgın deneyimi hakkında ne öğretebilir? Bu doğrultuda çalışma, hastalıkların kurmaca temsilleri ile koronavirüs pandemisinin yaşanan gerçeklikleri arasında çarpıcı paralellikler olduğunu tespit etmektedir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Pandemi , COVID-19 , salgın anlatısı , 20. yy. edebiyatı , insanın karşılıklı bağımlılığı

Kaynakça

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