How does the COVID-19 pandemic evoke fears of the apocalypse and what is the psychology of apocalyptic thinking in the United States? How does COVID-19 fit into the history of apocalyptic visions and narratives from the Book of Revelation to nuclear holocaust?
Dr. Chuck Strozier, a practicing psychoanalyst and professor emeritus of History at John Jay College, discusses COVID-19 and its connection to the history of the apocalypse, apocalyptic fears, and apocalyptic thinking in the United States. Dr. Strozier talks about the resonances between nuclear radiation and the coronavirus as invisible threats of death. He also offers his analysis of the Trumpist mindset and the reactions of the President and his followers to the pandemic. Dr. Strozier discusses historical analogues for the pandemic and COVID-19 survivors, emphasizing the long process of mourning and the ultimate resilience of the human spirit.
In this episode the obituary of Guillermo Frestan of New York City, NY is read in remembrance of his life.
For further reading:
Apocalypse: On the Psychology of Fundamentalism in America
The Fundamentalist Mindset: Psychological Perspectives on Religion, Violence, and History
Death in Life: Survivors of Hiroshima