I found the zombie article very interesting and informative. I have honestly never been particularly interested in zombies so I have never given any real thought as to what they might represent. In this article, which is actually an introduction to his book on zombies, Kyle Bishop, discusses the significance of zombies in general and throughout the periods of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. I was more than a little surprised at the fact that zombies were never really a part of literature, they did not have their beginnings in books like most other monsters and supernatural creatures. Bishop talks about how the idea of zombies began in Haitian folklore and transitioned almost immediately to American movies, even as early as the 1920’s. Even more interesting to me is the evolution of the zombie, especially in relation to the most common fears and anxieties of our culture at any given time. Bishop details the beginning of the zombie movies, a time when World War II was a concern as well as slavery. The movies of that time all depict themes of racism and reverse slavery and dominance and unwanted invasion, but at the hands of a puppet master. Through the decades and cultural upheavals and concerns, zombies have taken on different meanings and been depicted in different ways. Zombies and movies about them have represented themes of war, euthanasia, survivalist instincts, consumerism, terrorism, post-apocalyptic society and more. Bishop does a great job of breaking down the history of the genre, the monster and the themes and finding the meanings and relationships to our culture throughout. All in all, this article was very thought provoking and eye-opening and it will, without a doubt make me look at zombies with a more questioning mind from now on. I can also say that after doing our final project, I have a deeper appreciation for the amount of thought, analysis and research that went into his writing.
I have not been particularly interested in zombies either, but they seem to play a significant role in our culture, and I don't think they will be going away anytime soon with all the fear and anxieties of the world these days. Good job on your post.
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to say you did a great job on your post. I too am not fond of zombies nor have I really looked into them, read or watched anything zombie related. However, I did get much out of the article that I found interesting.
ReplyDeleteI have always enjoyed watching zombie movies. There are so many things that I personally don't think could ever happen, but it is entertaining to me to think about "what if?". I do think that zombies are a big part of our culture and is somewhat of a metaphor of what goes on in society.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post. This is all so interesting to me as well. It is amazing that people are so fascinated by the idea of zombies, and that people write books and watch movies on all of these zombies. New games have come out as well. It is entertaining for sure though. People are afraid of zombies, but yet they are intrigued by them as well. Especially during war times. good post.
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