The worldwide effects of the Covid–19 pandemic have been felt in all aspects of life, including social sciences research. This study examines how western science, society and government agencies dealt with an upheaval shaking the foundations of their societies to the core. The research finds that the endless daily complications caused by the pandemic in industrial–capitalist life (urbanized, democratic–bureaucratic and individualistic), are the product of an illusory « imaginary » of modernity espoused several centuries ago and these societies’ reactions to the enormous challenges they confronter. The research highlights the position of the social sciences in this broad process and explores the epistemological background of the questions posed by the social sciences and their relationship with society and its centers of power.