1918 Influenza and 1348 Black Death: Society’s Response

Even though the 1918 influenza pandemic and the 1348 Black Death differed in their microbial causes and were separated by more than 600 years, societies responded to them in strikingly similar ways. In both cases, social conditions increased vulnerability to disease, while public health and political responses followed familiar patterns. Each pandemic exposed weaknesses in institutions, tensions between personal liberty and collective responsibility, and episodes of mistrust in expert advice. Both also raised enduring questions about the role of healthcare providers when effective treatments were unavailable. Though often viewed as distant historical events, each left lasting effects on society.

This talk explores how responses to the 1918 influenza and the medieval Black Death reveal persistent patterns in epidemic response and how those patterns may inform reactions to epidemics today, including COVID.

Powel Kazanjian, M.D., Ph.D., is an infectious diseases doctor and medical historian. He has degrees from the University of Pennsylvania (B.A.), Harvard (M.A., History of Science), Tufts (M.D.), and at the University of Michigan (Ph.D., History), where he is an emeritus professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases and an Emeritus Professor in the Department of History. Powel’s medical background and historical training have enabled a multidisciplinary approach to his teaching and scholarship. His courses on the “History of Epidemics,” “Sexually Transmitted Diseases,” and “Doctor in Society” provide a comprehensive lens to view the impact that epidemic diseases have had on societies throughout history.