From the 1918 influenza pandemic to Covid-19: The use of literary references (beyond Josep Pla) in the current press

Abstract

In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the media have used historical precedents and artistic representations to interpret the situation. Within this framework, and given its proximity and the abundance of testimonies, the 1918 influenza pandemic has been an ineluctable reference episode, with numerous parallels exploited by the media. This study analyzes how the Catalan press has treated this precedent, focusing the analysis on the literary testimonies of the 1918 influenza pandemic cited in the harshest period of the Covid-19 crisis. From a primarily Catalan viewpoint, an interpretation is made of the factors that have led the media to choose certain specific testimonies – mainly Josep Pla’s The grey notebook – and not to take into account others that are also valuable. Likewise, considerations are made about the future and the mechanisms that determine the media’s use of literature for the construction of the collective memory of traumatic episodes such as the Covid-19 pandemic.