Covid-19 has killed some 75,000 Americans—friends and co-workers—and many more will follow. This harrowing statistic brings to mind Pascal’s words in 1670: We shall die alone.
The passing of those laid low by the novel coronavirus is especially solitary and alienating. Some victims die alone at home, while others suck their last desperate breaths through a ventilator, with loved ones ordered to await word from far away as doctors and nurses watch through a cloud of insulated plastic.
