Written by Ellen Bryant Voigt, Kyrie, a collection of poems and sonnets, discusses the Spanish Flu pandemic that ravaged the world in the early 20th century. Specifically, Voigt’s Kyrie depicts the pain and emotions one deals with during tragedy. Voigt’s writing depicts this seemingly forgotten pandemic through reliving and enlivening the lost voices of this time. Throughout Kyrie, Voigt displays the emotions felt during this tragedy and how this forgotten pandemic affected and ended, millions of lives. In Voigt’s last entry of the Kyrie collection, Voigt presents a poem of much different tone that challenges the reader to question the nature of the Spanish Flu and why it has been so easily forgotten. Voigt uses natural and impassioned imagery to enliven the suffering victims of the Spanish Flu endured by comparing the repetitive frequency of tragedy to nature and ultimately ponder the purpose of reliving past tragedy. …show more content…
The Spanish Flu of 1918 spread across the world rapidly and claimed an estimated 50 million lives, 700,000 of which were American (Breidbart).
According to Emily Breidbart, the Spanish Flu’s rapid transmission was caused by “[the] crowding and migration of the First World War” (Breidbart), in which civilians, refugees, and soldiers were constantly shifting around the globe. Overall, the Spanish flu ravaged a world lacking the medicinal knowledge to understand it and ill-equipped to combat its malicious symptoms (Breidbart). However, the Spanish flu is often unknown by many although it ravaged not only the United States but nearly the entire world
(Breidbart). Voigt addresses the painful effects of the Spanish Flu by creating an emotionally powerful, angry tone through densely repeating impassioned diction. Throughout the first stanza of Kyrie, Voigt implements diction that creates an emotionally powerful, angry tone to illustrate the emotions felt by victims of the Spanish Flu. The repetition of words such as “awful” (l. 2), “wreckage” (l. 3), and “failed” (l. 4) supplement the tone of the first stanza. For instance, Voigt describes time as “awful” (l. 2), wreckage as “human” (l. 3), and the notion of analyzing or discussing the Spanish Flu as “drag[ing] us back to the ditch” (l. 4), which further develops the emotionally powerful, angry tone by channeling the emotions of those affected by the Spanish Flu. Likewise, the use of words like “scavenging” (l. 2) and “oblivion” (1. 5) aid in creating an emotionally powerful, angry tone, but also develops an undertone of desperation and strife; emotions all too common during the Spanish Flu. Voigt’s use of such diction brings the voices of the victims to life and personifies the suffering they endured during this time. Thus, Voigt ponders the reason for reliving the Spanish Flu, rather than leaving it in the past, through revitalizing the voices of those it affected. Furthermore, Voigt ponders the appropriateness of reliving tragedy and, specifically, the purpose of doing so. Throughout the final entry in Kyrie, Voigt poses several questions regarding the reasoning for “go[ing] back to that awful time” (l. 1) and reliving a past tragedy. Voigt rationalizes that those affected by this tragedy have suffered enough and reliving the tragedy would only bring more pain: “[w]hy drag us back to the ditch? / Don’t you people have sufficient woe?” (ll. 4,11). Moreover, Voigt writes that analysis or discussion will only prove to prolong their suffering indefinitely: “Have you no regard for oblivion?” (l. 5). Voigt brings a turn in the tone and style of the poem with this question. For instance, the first stanza takes an inquisitive position asking “[w]hy” (l. 1) and “what” (l. 3) questions regarding the reason for reliving the Spanish Flu. In contrast, Voigt concludes the first stanza with an accusatory question: “Have you no regard for oblivion?” (l. 5). Here, Voigt is asserting that those who wish to enliven and reinvigorate tragedy are ignorant of the pain it caused. Thus, Voigt illustrates the true horror of this pandemic and alludes that the Spanish Flu should be left in the past. As a result, Voigt clarifies the reason why reliving tragedy is pointless and will only prove to prolong the suffering of those affected by the Spanish Flu. Voigt creates a parallel between nature and tragedy to clarify why reliving tragedy is pointless. In the second stanza of the final poem of Kyrie, Voigt states: “History is organic, a great tree” (73), here Voigt suggests that history, much like a tree, is firm and inevitable. To justify the futility of reliving tragedy, Voigt presents the idea that while tragedy is horrid, it is not unavoidable and will, inevitably, occur again. Voigt continues with: “along the starched corduroy of its bark / the healed scars, the seasonal losses / so asymmetrical, so common” (ll. 6-8). Voigt depicts the tree, or rather a tragedy, as a part of nature and creates a parallel between the two. Voigt alludes that while tragedy is “asymmetrical” (l. 9), or divergent and unpredictable, tragedy, like “a great tree” (l. 6), is also “organic” (l. 6) and is “so common” (1. 9). Thus, Voigt’s point is furthered by describing this “great tree” (l. 6), history, or tragedy, as a part of nature and therefore is inevitable. Further, that tragedy is naturally cyclical or repetitive like the seasons themselves. Voigt compares the blemishes of a tree to the effects of tragedy as “the healed scars, the seasonal losses” (l. 8). As a result, Voigt depicts tragedy and its effects as repetitive events, much like the repetitive events of nature itself by implementing natural imagery. Voigt presents the effects of tragedy much like a scar that will eventually heal and a loss that occurs with every season. Voigt then moves to pose an underlying question: “why should you set out to count?” (l. 10). Here, Voigt ties together the parallel between nature and tragedy by pondering why humanity must count and total up the trials they face and, ultimately, relive past tragedies. Voigt questions why one must count “the healed scars” and “the seasonal losses” (1. 8) when they will inevitably occur again, however, Voigt is also referencing the rings found within a tree that, according to Jessica Stoller-Conrad, once cut down can denote its lifespan and quality of life (Stoller-Conrad). This natural comparison furthers Voigt’s parallel between the tree and tragedy by comparing the rings of a tree to the trials society faces during a tragedy. Voigt not only questions the appropriateness of counting and analyzing the pain people face during a tragedy, but also whether future generations should reinvigorate the Spanish Flu by discussing and analyzing its effects and outcomes. Altogether, Voigt asserts by using natural imagery that tragedy is cyclical like nature itself and will inevitably occur again, therefore it is pointless to “count” (l. 10) or relive tragedy. Voigt’s use of natural imagery and emotionally powerful, angry tone throughout the final entry of Kyrie exemplifies the recurrent nature of tragedy and the futility of reliving past tragedies. Voigt’s tone enlivens the suffering felt by those affected by the Spanish Flu and the anger towards reliving a past tragedy. Voigt’s comparison of tragedy to nature, specifically a tree, allows the reader to view tragedy as cyclical, like nature itself. Voigt presents the notion that tragedies are inevitable and a part of nature, and the effects of which occur cyclically much like the seasons themselves. Therefore, Voigt asserts that any attempt to relive or reinvigorate past tragedies will only prove to prolong the suffering of those it affected, and that tragedy will, eventually, occur again. Voigt’s comparison of tragedy to that of nature ultimately hints that while the Spanish Flu was awful, perhaps the reasoning for it becoming somewhat of a forgotten pandemic is to due to just how horrible it was and reliving it will only cause unnecessary suffering.
The Influenza Pandemic of 1918-1919 occurred during the midst of World War I, and it would claim more lives than the war itself. The disease erupted suddenly without a forewarning and spread rapidly across the globe. It seemed as though all of humanity had fallen under the mercy of this deadly illness. Influenza had very clear symptoms as described by William Collier in his letter to The Lancet. After a patient seizes their temperature can run up to 105° or more while their pulse averages at about 90 beats per minute. The high temperature and low pulse are frequently combined with epistaxis (nosebleed) and cyanosis (blueness of the skin). The epistaxis is caused by the high temperature and the cyanosis is caused by a lack of oxygen due to the decreased pulse (Kent 34). The author of Influenza Pandemic of 1918-1919, Susan Kinglsey Kent, provides a brief history of the pandemic and documents from the time period. Many of the included documents show how unprepared and unorganized governments attempted to contain and control a disease they had never experienced, and how the expectations of the governments changed as a result of their successes and failures.
She did not survive the Reagan Administration. I am here because my son and I may not survive four more years of leaders who say they care, but do nothing.” In this appeal Mrs. Glaser is appealing to her audience’s emotions, especially the emotions one feels when talking about their family like love and empathy. She mentions that her daughter has died because of this disease and that her son and herself are dying as well to show that this is a disease that can affect anyone and that it is crucial to work on cures or vaccinations to prevent others from suffering the way her family has. No mother or father wants to watch their children suffer and die because of a disease, so Mrs. Glaser uses her experience to appeal to those emotions.
At the time, the Influenza of 1918 was called the Spanish Flu. Spain was not involved in the expanding great war (i.e., World War I) and therefore was not censoring it's press. However, Germany, Britain, and America were censoring their newspapers for anything that would lower morale. Therefore, Spain was the first country to publish accounts of the pandemic (Barry 171 and Furman 326), even though the pandemic most likely started in either France or the United States. It was also unique in it's deadliness; it “killed more people in a year than the Black Death of the Middle Ages killed in a century” (Barry 5). In the United States, the experience during the pandemic varied from location to location. Some areas were better off whereas some were hit horribly by the disease, such as Philadelphia. It also came as a shock to many, though some predicted it's coming; few thought it would strike with the speed and lethality that it did. Though the inherent qualities of the flu enabled its devastation of the country, the response to the flu was in part responsible as well. The response to the pandemic was reasonable, given the dire situation, but not sufficient enough to prevent unnecessary death and hardship, especially in Philadelphia.
There are only two types of people in a time of war and crisis, those who survive and those who die. Elie Wiesel’s novel, Night, shows how Elie, himself, faces difficult problems and struggles to survive World War II. Wilfred Owen’s poem, “Dulce et Decorum Est”, tells a story about a young soldier thinking of himself before others during World War I. The poem “Mary Hamilton” shows how a mother killed her child
Nancy K. Bristow, American Pandemic, The Lost Worlds of the 1918 Influenza Epidemic (New York: Oxford University Press, 2012), 193
The influenza or flu pandemic of 1918 to 1919, the deadliest in modern history, infected an estimated 500 million people worldwide–about one-third of the planet’s population at the time–and estimates place the number of victims anywhere from 25 to 100 million. More than 25 percent of the U.S. population became sick, and some 675,000 Americans died during the pandemic. The 1918 flu was first observed in Europe, the U.S. and parts of Asia before swiftly spreading around the world. Surprisingly, many flu victims were young, otherwise healthy adults. At the time, there were no effective drugs or vaccines to treat this killer flu strain or prevent its spread. In the U.S., citizens were ordered to wear masks, and schools, theaters and other public
A few years before 1918, in the height of the First World War, a calamity occurred that stripped the globe of at least 50 million lives. (Taubenberger, 1918) This calamity was not the death toll of the war; albeit, some individuals may argue the globalization associated with the First World War perpetuated the persistence of this calamity. This calamity was referred to the Spanish Flu of 1918, but calling this devastating pestilence the “Spanish Flu” may be a historical inaccuracy, as research and historians suggest that the likelihood of this disease originating in Spain seams greatly improbable. Despite it’s misnomer, the Spanish Flu, or its virus name H1N1, still swept across the globe passing from human to human by exhaled drops of water that contained a deadly strand of RNA wrapped with a protein casing. Individuals who were unfortunate enough to come in contact with the contents of the protein casing generally developed severe respiratory inflammation, as the Immune system’s own response towards the infected lung cells would destroy much of the lungs, thus causing the lungs to flood with fluids. Due to this flooding, pneumonia was a common cause of death for those infected with Spanish Flu. Due its genetic similarity with Avian Flu, the Spanish Flu is thought to be descended from Avian Flu which is commonly known as “Bird Flu.” (Billings,1997) The Spanish Flu of 1918 has had a larger impact in terms of global significance than any other disease has had because it was the most deadly, easily transmitted across the entire globe, and occurred in an ideal time period for a disease to happen.
...ssor Heather MacDougall, “July – 11 November 1918: Pandemic Influenza on the Battlefield and Homefront,” Lecture delivered 9 November, 2011, HIST 191, University of Waterloo
With such a rapid mortality rate the epidemic lead to many adversities within the various social structures throughout the western world. All social classes were affected, although the lower classes, living together in unhygienic environments, were obviously most vulnerable. Consequently, many medieval people began to isolate themselves away out of fear of infection. Parents fled from their children, husbands left wives, and sick relatives were d...
One of the most virulent strains of influenza in history ravaged the world and decimated the populations around the world. Present during World War I, the 1918 strain of pandemic influenza found many opportunities to spread through the war. At the time, science wasn’t advanced enough to study the virus, much less find a cure; medical personnel were helpless when it came to fighting the disease, and so the flu went on to infect millions and kill at a rate 25 times higher than the standard.
When the plague first reached Europe, people panicked. They wanted to survive, many began to abandon what they had and moved to villages and country sides in hope of not catching the disease. Families abandoned each other and left children to die. The horror that people in Europe were feeling was traumatic...
Kolata, Gina. Flu: The Story of the Great Influenza Pandemic of 1918 and the Search for the Virus that Cause It. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1999. Print.
The traumatizing scenes a man experiences during a plague probably haunt him throughout his life – if he manages to survive. In Jack London’s 1912 novella, “The Scarlet Plague”, London brilliantly narrates the life of an elderly man, “Granser” who managed to survive the lethal hands of the plague that decimated millions sixty years ago, reverting the once “colossal civilization” to cave-man existence. (16) Granser recounts the emergence of the Scarlet Plague and its catastrophic impact on society as he tells his savage grandsons the world before and after the epidemic. London’s use of imagery offers a graphic appeal to open the reader’s eye and ears to the physical pandemonium of the plague, evoking the reader’s soul to the themes the plague symbolizes: reclamation of
‘The Falling Soldier’ is one of many poems by Duffy which deals with the subject of human mortality. Duffy expresses what could have been over a harsh reality; this is characteristic of her as also seen in ‘Last Post’ and ‘Passing Bells’ which both seem to be largely influenced by poet peer Wilfred Owen’s personal experiences of war. In the ‘The Falling Soldier’ Duffy paradoxically captures the essence of Robert Capa’s famous photograph of a man falling after being shot during the Spanish Civil War (1936). She employs the form of an impersonal narrative voice, using second person to question the possibilities, to explore the tragic and cyclical nature of war. The futile reality of war contrasts to her central theme in ‘The Bees’ anthology of bees symbolising the grace left in humanity.
This disease was first diagnosed in 1918 and it was referred to as the “Spanish Flu” or “La Grippe.” To this day it is thought to of been the same strain as the swine influenza however it is still unclear. For this particular outbreak it’s not exactly know whether humans contracted the virus from pigs or vice versa. Either way between 20-40 million people died from it. The first confirmed case of H1N1 in the U.S. was diagnosed on April 15th, 2009. The CDC quickly began developing a vaccine due to the fact that it was declared a public health emergency about a week later by the government. It tu...