Bubonic Panic: When Plague Invaded America traces one of the worst diseases in human history from its first mention in a message written in 542 in the Roman Empire to its crash landing on American shores during the turn of the 20th century.
Pick 2 of 3:
1) Describe the writer’s tone and writing style. Point out that the author personifies the plague as “the killer” and refers to the victim as “you". What effect does that have on readers?
2) When plague broke out in the Chinatown section of San Francisco, many people suspected the plague was somehow connected to people of Asian heritage. What factors led people to think the disease had something to do with the victims’ heritage? What was the actual reason Chinatown was likely the place where bubonic plague came to America?
3) Over the years, what are some of the common reactions of human beings to the threat of an outbreak of bubonic plague or another pandemic? How have we seen these manifest during COVID-19?