A journal for a plague year--inspired by Daniel Defoe

It was about the beginning of September, 1664, that I, among the rest of my neighbours, heard in ordinary discourse that the plague was returned again in Holland; for it had been very violent there, and particularly at Amsterdam and Rotterdam, in the year 1663, whither, they say, it was brought, some said from Italy, others from the Levant, among some goods which were brought home by their Turkey fleet; others said it was brought from Candia; others from Cyprus. It mattered not from whence it came; but all agreed it was come into Holland again.        

                       --Opening passage from Daniel Defoe, A Journal of the Plague Year 


I have been thinking about Daniel Defoe's book Journal of the Plague Year for the past week. In fact, I found a copy at the Coe College library and signed it out on the last day of classes before our "extended" spring break--the spring break that just might morph into cancellation of in-person classes at Coe this spring because of our own 21st century plague: COVID-19.

I first read Journal of the Plague Year in graduate school--in a class on 18th century British literature. As a person who occasionally has obsessions with macabre topics (the Titanic, Lizzie Bordon, the Plague), I found it fascinating.

A screenshot of a page from my blog "Reading the Titanic."
Is it morbid to be interested in things like the Titanic and the Plague?

As a person who likes to read--and write--creative nonfiction, I enjoyed thinking about the book as a piece of writing.

Although it purports to be a diary of sorts, written by someone who lived through the plague of 1665 as it swept through London, the author, Daniel Defoe, was only 5 years old in 1665.

Daniel Defoe when he was more than 5 years old.

So in order to write the book, he had to do research--probably interview humans and experts, read what there was written about the plague, find primary sources, and so on. He had to reflect on and articulate some of the themes and ideas that arose when recounting the effect of such a disaster on the population--and on a single individual, the "I" of the story. And he then put all that information into an interesting narrative.

Of course today Journal of the Plague Year seems particularly relevant. Maybe those of us living through this particular Plague Year have an opportunity to write our own journals.

As those of us who've kept journals know, writing can be a powerful way to channel one's thoughts. Research has shown that putting our experience into a narrative can help us process that experience and make meaning out of it.

And in these times when things are changing every day and uncertainty abounds, writing can help us feel more in control. Or at least, it can help us corral our worries and anxieties onto the page.

I think, too, that reading about how someone else weathered a disaster--a pandemic, in fact--can help us put our own situation into some kind of perspective.

And what about posterity? I bet some day in the future, someone will ask you "what did you do during the great pandemic of 2020?" Wouldn't it be great to have some records of what was happening around you, what you were thinking, how you were responding?

For all these reasons--and because I just felt compelled by this Plague Year idea--I'm starting this blog. I hope to write frequently, maybe a few times a week. I've already written a few posts, and I'll start sharing publishing them on this blog and sharing them via social media.

Are you keeping some kind of journal or record of this unusual and strange year? Let me know if you are!

Until the next post, I wish you health and peace.