Sacrificing and Creating the Sacred: The Sociology of Sacrifice in the COVID-19 Crisis
As I was watching Morning Joe this morning, a quote from Dr. Bruce Aylward, Senior Adviser to the Director-General of the WHO, caught my attention on the point of how different parts of the world are reacting differently to this moment. The story he told involved a Chinese woman who was caught in Wuhan after the lockdown, stuck far from her home and children who were in another part of China 1000km away. Rather than her lamenting her misfortune at having to stay in Wuhan for over a month, she viewed her sheltering in place as part of her obligation and duty to sacrifice for a greater good and cause larger than herself. It is hard not to hear her story and think of whether persons in Western societies (like the United States) would commit themselves in the way this Chinese woman did. Or, would we prioritize our own feelings and sense of inconvenience over the benefit of everyone else
Not the bees!
These questions get to the concept of sacrifice, and what does it mean to sacrifice for others. Looking up a dictionary definition of sacrifice, we find that sacrifice can involve the slaughtering an animal (or in less desirable circumstances a person) as an offering to appease a supernatural power. Another definition involves “an act of giving up something valued for the sake of something else regarded as more important or worthy.” In both definitions, sacrifice is a kind of exchange in which a person forgoes a one thing in order to achieve something else. In sacrificing something important to use, we are giving up a thing that is valued for something that is of value to another person. For instance, I might sacrifice watching a show I want to see so that my children can watch a The Loud House marathon on Nickelodeon. That may not sound like a major sacrifice to some, but others will recognize the magnitude of it.
Sacrifice is inherently a social act, which makes it a perfect topic for sociological examination. In looking for some literature on the sociology of sacrifice, I came across an article by Chris Shilling and Philip Mellor article titled, “’Making things sacred’: re-theorizing the nature and function of sacrifice in modernity” published in the Journal of Classical Sociology. The article refers to the origins of the word “sacrifice” being from the Latin sacer facer – or ‘making the sacred’. In other words, the existence of a sacred moment is born out of the actions of those who produce it through their sacrifice. Thus, it is the act of sacrificing that creates a sacred moment.
If the sacrifices of people make a moment sacred, this gets us back to the original question of why does personal, and thus shared, sacrifice seem so difficult for some (or many) right now? What possesses people to go out to bars, hang out on beaches, go about their daily social lives without any seeming concern for others? What is it about this moment, compared to other moments, which makes it more difficult for some people to share in sacrifice? As a culture in the US, are we bad at sacrifice?
From a sociological perspective, I would say part of this lies in the nature of our attacker, and whether such a foe is capable of bringing us together. While we are perhaps ‘under attack,’ the attacker is relatively agnostic in terms of its targets and aims. Our ‘way of life’ is not the stated target of the attack. Our ‘freedoms,’ while being affected, are not the target of the attack either. The COVID-19 virus did not issue any manifesto or proclaimed ideology. It is not making demands which have to be met to cease hostilities. We can’t even attack it with military weaponry. Thus, all the military metaphors in the world are not going to change how people view this, and thus the immediate sense of urgency they feel about it. In truth, COVID-19 is not attacking ‘us’ because of who we are; it is just doing what viruses do.
Also, further complicating a united response is the ideological divides in the US. However, I would say it is not as simple as framing “Red v. Blue” or “Republican v. Democrat.” Rather, a more accurate framing would be “Wishful Thinking v. Factual Analysis.” Much has been written about people just operating from different basis of perception around a lot of topics, and this one is no different. Because of this divergence, we do not share the same threat level assessment from which we can agree on the amount of sacrifice needed. There is not seen to be a common set of factors to orient to, and thus evaluate what sacrifice is needed.
A final thing creating a lack of shared sacrifice is the ways in which the COVID-19 virus has been said to affect different age groups and pre-existing conditions at different rates. This led to some or many think that since they are young and healthy they don’t need to worry as much about the effects of the virus. Therefore, they don’t feel as under attack and do not need to sacrifice in any appreciable way. An outlook like this led to appeals to broader social responsibility for others to fall on deaf ears.
Given these and other associated factors, the next question becomes, “what can be done about it?” How do we create a shared sense of sacrifice in a society? Furthermore, how can a sense of shared sacrifice be created in organizations? Below are some steps that can be taken to create a stronger sense of sacrifice:
Establish a NBS assessment (NBSA) of the situation: A no bull-sh*t assessment is one that is truthful and realistic without any kind of sugar coating or wishful thinking. Without a shared sense of the challenge or need, it can be hard to generate a shared sense of sacrifice.
Develop a shared identity and community: A common threat does wonders to generate cohesion. Once a NBSA has been established, we can develop a shared identity as being affected by this threat, and thus start to work together.
Create a social movement: With a common threat and shared identity comes the potential for a social movement. People like to be part of things larger than themselves, and feel like they are contributing to a cause of significance.
Identify and magnify progress: While progress may seem small an incremental, it can reinforce to everyone that their sacrifice is making a difference. It can be as simple as reinforcing positive behaviors and sanctioning or discouraging negative behaviors. Celebrate individual contributions and sacrifices.
Look to historical precedent for ideas and inspiration: Shared sacrifice in a time of external threat is clearly not a new concept. Whether it is buying war bond during WWII, to giving to charity, to a child giving up a toy to benefit another child, all moments have the elements of how to build a successful sacrifice movement.
Sacrifice by example: It is important that those seen as leaders also be seen to be involved in the act of sacrifice. Modeling of behavior becomes a key part of creating a sacrifice.
Keep in mind that ‘sacrifice’ here might be things great and small, and in many ways sacrifice is in the eye of the beholder. Whether it be social distancing or hand-washing (for many of us, hand-washing is a new thing), or forgoing a vacation, all sacrifice done toward a common goal need to be socially recognized and celebrated as fundamental to what “we” do and what make “us” who we are. Sacrifice shouldn’t become a competition even though comparisons of sacrifices may be made. Creating a culture of giving starts with small acts that creates a habit and feeling of contribution, resulting in people feeling good through the process itself.
Through creating a movement of sacrifice together, we can make any moment feel sacred. Help your communities and organizations develop a culture of sacrifice, especially when the needs of many require us to act beyond ourselves.