Colonial ‘Othering’ in Pandemic Movies: Pandemic as a Metaphor for Colonialism as Represented in the Movie Contagion

Abstract

A pandemic is a high prevalence outbreak of infectious disease that occurs over a wide geographical area. In the scheme of human history, pandemics are nothing new. Apocalyptic outbreaks of diseases have been a recurring motif in literature since time immemorial. Pandemic literature helps us contextualise the reality of such outbreaks and mirrors our fears about the disease and societal collapse.