How to Live Through a Pandemic

This book explores what anthropology can contribute to an understanding of how people live through pandemics. It reflects on how pandemics are experienced and what we can learn from Covid-19 as well as previous instances that might inform future responses and help to alleviate suffering. The chapters highlight current research and longer-term reflections from different countries and areas of the discipline, covering medical anthropology, care and surveillance, digital and experimental ethnography, and the everyday economies of lockdown. They show the breadth and originality of anthropological work relevant to thinking about and responding to pandemic situations. Extending beyond Covid-19, the volume considers the implications for ongoing and future research under pandemic restrictions and gives a broad overview of current anthropology relevant to questions about pandemics. It will be of interest to both academic and applied anthropologists, as well as to sociologists and those working in global and public health.

Simone Abram is Professor in Anthropology at the University of Durham, and chair of ASA 2020–2024. Recent book publications include Energy Futures, Electrifying Anthropology, and Ethnographies of Power.

Helen Lambert is Professor of Medical Anthropology in the Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Bristol. Her research interests include antimicrobial resistance, Asian medical systems, and global public health.

Jude Robinson is a social anthropologist researching the lives of women and children living in resource-limited settings in the UK and countries in East Africa. Her current research focuses on using gendered theory to explore how people maintain their physical and mental health in diverse settings; health in the context of climate change; and health hygiene and water insecurity.