Covid, Papillion & Virtual Sex.

Covid, Papillon & Virtual Sex.

Papillion is an autobiographical novel written by Henri Charriere containing, among other things, his incarceration in a French penal colony in French Guiana. I read it a long time ago, but one sentence sticks in my mind.;

“The French invented a new form of torture; silence.”

He spent years where inmates were forced to be silent. If you made a noise or spoke, your sentence was increased.

Albeit less severe; over a year in Covid restrictions would therefore give us all a greater appreciation of what he and other prisoners went through. A bubble existence almost like goldfish, but even goldfish are not constrained by the 2-meter distancing rule.

Social animals not allowed to socialize. Even us British, not exactly well known for being tactile or communicative have shown signs of strain. Increased media coverage on mental health is anathema, especially to a war time generation raised on “Keep buggering on & just make a cup of tea.”

As for sex; if you are in a bubble, there is no; honey honey, getting your leg over, how's your father, or shall we stay up late to watch the 6 o-clock news, or get an early night?

Then of course there is the question “Have we forgotten how to socialize?” After an extended period, akin celebrate Trappist monks in our cells, how will we react to mask less expressions in the shops, meaningful conversations, regular haircuts, not jumping at every stranger's cough and the act of procreation?