From fighting against to becoming with : viruses as companion species

Résumé :

Since the development of microbiology in the second half of the 19th century, as well as the recognition of the role of microbes in infectious diseases, viruses are first and foremost conceived as dangerous and deadly entities against which we must fight. This chapter is built around three examples of relationships between humans and viruses that the author, taking seriously the proposal made in this book, proposes to rethink using the notion of domestication. In doing so, we are gradually led to think about our relationships with viruses from the perspective of coexistence, opening the way to other ways of thinking about our health policies.