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Chapter 31
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Great Influenza, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Leadership and Crisis
Truth, Free Press, and Propaganda
Science vs. Nature
Education, Research, and Institutions
Summary
Analysis
Most disease victims, particularly in North America and Europe, made full recoveries. But some victims were left with a final complication. The influenza virus attacked the brain, and as a result of this, it caused various mental instabilities in some survivors. Delirium, depression, and apathy were all common among victims. A decade later, some linked the influenza to an increase in Parkinson’s disease.
Recent research about “Long COVID” provides an interesting parallel with the after-effects of the 1918 influenza pandemic, even though the most recent edition of The Great Influenza came out before the effects of Long COVID were widely known. Though Barry couldn’t have intended the parallel, these current events help illustrate how prescient Barry’s book was and how his central theme about the past repeating itself remains relevant.
Themes
New research into the 1918 pandemic conducted throughout the 20th century seems to confirm the previously anecdotal evidence that influenza survivors often suffered mental health issues.
The fact that the 1918 pandemic continues to be a topic of research and scholarship testifies to its continued relevance.
Themes
Even as government officials died of the disease, an important meeting of heads of state from the victorious nations in the war was planned in Paris. Though many people from many countries attended, in the end many of the decisions were made by President Wilson, without his staff, in conference with France and Britain’s leaders.
Wilson’s decision to go it alone during the peace talks provides a contrast with all of the scientists who worked on a cure for the influenza pandemic collaboratively. Though the scientists worked long hours alone in a lab, they were part of a community, whereas Wilson seemed to be trying to do things unilaterally.
Themes
Wilson’s negotiations in France stretched on, and people in his family caught influenza, which lingered even into late March of 1919. On April 3, Wilson himself had an attack so violent that some suspect he’d been poisoned (in fact, it was just influenza). Before his fever, Wilson was uncompromising, ready to walk away from any treaty if the United States didn’t get favorable terms. After getting sick, he was eager to return to negotiations as soon as possible, but his health didn’t allow it.
Wilson’s own experience with disease shows why it is dangerous to invest too much authority in any single person—because even the most powerful people are human and vulnerable to things like disease. As Barry argues elsewhere, the way to combat this problem is to build effective institutions that will outlast the individuals who created them.
Themes
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Some people around Wilson noted that he’d lost his mental “resiliency” since the attack. At one point, Wilson believed his home was full of French spies. Wilson appeared tired, and one day he suddenly yielded to all of France’s demands without getting anything in return. This included having Germany accept all responsibility for war, pay reparations, demilitarize, and hand certain strategic territories over to France.
The outcome of the peace talks shows again the problems of trying to act unilaterally. Wilson’s erratic behavior clearly demonstrates that his illness affected his judgment. In this way, just one case of influenza ended up having an enormous impact on world relations, arguably leading to the imperfect peace agreements that set the stage for World War II.
Themes
Germany was shocked by the treaty’s terms and believed it violated the principles Wilson had set forth. Wilson continued to speak erratically, and many later described his mental state as resembling a nervous breakdown. Four months later, he suffered a major stroke.
Wilson’s stroke emphasizes how the effects of influenza could be long-term and unpredictable. If one case of influenza could have such a large impact on the president of the United States, it doubtless had an even larger impact on individuals who didn’t have the same medical resources available to them.
Themes
Some later historians argued that Wilson actually suffered his first small stroke in France, but one careful medical historian confirmed that Wilson’s symptoms in France matched perfectly with influenza, not stroke. The myth of Wilson’s stroke has often been repeated, even in the 21st century. A recent study shows, however, that there is a clear link between influenza and stroke.
One of Barry’s main interests is not just what happened in history but also how this history gets told. Here, Barry gives an inside look at the process of how history gets recorded, showing how myths and other false information can be confused with real history.
Themes
It’s impossible to know how Wilson’s influenza case changed history. Most historians agree, however, that the harshness toward Germany in the World War I peace treaty was directly responsible for creating the conditions that led to World War II. Even at the time, many criticized Wilson’s role in the peace treaty, calling him a hypocrite who betrayed his own principles. Several diplomats either resigned or threatened to.
One of the frightening things about Wilson’s case of influenza is that it seemed to change his whole identity, causing him to give up values that had previously been central to him. Perhaps on a larger scale, a similar change was happening across the entire United States due to the scars left behind by the virus.
Themes
