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Politics and Plague
Disease, Democracy, and Athens
Today I gave a talk for saveancientstudies.org and Digital Hammurabi on the Plague of Athens. It was a great deal of fun to properly research outside of my actual field. During the talk interest was expressed in anything else I’ve written (yikes) and really the best place to route people was here. So without further ado, here is the transcript of my talk.
Introduction
The Athenian Plague is a historical event integrally interlaced with the political realities of the time. It proliferated as a result of tactical and political decisions of the time and it also affected these decisions. It is impossible to draw direct correlates between other historical plagues and political events or even our modern pandemic, but it would also be wrong to entirely dismiss the reality of how pathogens and our reaction to them form our history and culture and how they inform our behaviour.
Background
What became the Peloponnesian War was in fact the second Peloponnesian War and grew essentially out of a conflict between Athens and its colonial holdings. In fact, throughout the war Thucydides…
