Lead Essay - Viral Trajectories

Abstract

Inside the Pandemic “Viral Trajectories” is the second special issue of the Journal of Bioethical Inquiry in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, we published a double issue exploring multiple perspectives on how the unfolding pandemic was being experienced. That volume, called “Inside the Pandemic,” sought to document what it was like to confront a developing, massive global catastrophe whose force and future effects were completely unknown. We chronicled the fears and uncertainty, along with the challenges to social life, relationships, and ethical precepts that had previously been assumed to be stable and secure.

We had always intended to follow up the original collection with a sequel after the pandemic was over, which we imagined would be undertaken with the luxury of quiet, retrospective reflection on what had succeeded and what had gone wrong, to allow evaluation of our incipient speculations and to offer guidance for the management of future similar events.