Introduction 

Our chosen topic for the digital exhibit is virus eco-horror. Virus eco-horror preys on a natural fear that has been present with humans for nearly as long as they have existed: the fear of an unseen enemy that has the potential to kill and that is very hard to combat. Viruses and other ailments have been present throughout human history, ranging from "ancient" plagues like the Black Death to more modern outbreaks such as the Spanish influenza, polio, and COVID-19. As humanity has experienced these plagues, the memory of those who lived through them has become integrated into our societies and our stories. The modern manifestation of this is with virus eco-horror, which centers around stories that involve humanity combating and usually at least partially succumbing to a virus or other disease.

Plagues throughout history have given media creators material for inspiration. However, COVID-19 has only further impacted this genre and those who consume it, as it is the most modern realization of all of the tropes and themes in virus eco-horror. This is especially impactful for the younger generations who have not experienced any kind of major outbreak until now, as COVID-19 now cements their fears with real-life experience and links them to the genre, even potentially inspiring them to create stories. This is opposite of older generations who most recently bore witness to the polio outbreak that occurred in the mid-20th century. While it is still too early to observe many examples of COVID-19's impact on the genre, as the pandemic has only been around for two years, the impact of COVID-19 on this genre will be interesting to see as it will provide even more material for media creators to take inspiration from. One possible prediction, considering the general failure of many governments to properly address the pandemic, is that virus eco-horror media inspired by COVID-19 may end up containing more critical social commentary and may even take an increasingly dystopian take on how the world reacts to a widespread pandemic that can cripple the globe. As current media in the genre does, these new pieces of media may very well reflect deeply on the real world and society at large underneath the veil of the fictional universe they are set in.

Therefore, we feel that media in this genre can provide crucial explorations of themes and societal attitudes that envelop a global society that has fought viruses and ailments for nearly all of its existence. While media impacted by COVID-19 will provide additional and unique reflection on these themes and attitudes, current virus eco-horror media already does as well. Therefore, in this digital exhibit, we will aim to explore several pieces of media, both novels and films, with the goal of illustrating elements in each of them that place them in the genre of virus eco-horror and that may link back to the world at large. In addition, we will identify the impact of both literary and cinematic techniques that encapsulate the horrifying power of nature demonstrated by viruses and reflect on what they may imply about the situations from which they take inspiration.
 

Scope of Analysis
Overall, we want to cover the following aspects of virus eco-horror.

• The scope and origins of the deadly virus trope
• The scale of the impact of the virus and its relevance to the entire text
• The presence of antagonistic influences and its wider societal implications
• How the virus trope preys on human paranoia (being attacked by an invisible enemy)