Hobbes’ classic description of the state of nature is a remarkably accurate depiction of the world to which zombie survivors desperately cling. If we consider these characteristics within the context of a zombie outbreak, becoming a zombie may appear an even more seductive possibility.
Indeed, if we focus on just these qualities, the life of a zombie resembles the ideal state of a disciplined Zen Buddhist monk who has managed to let go of his earthly concerns. And they certainly do not become jealous, depressed, worrisome, or suffer the other anxieties that regularly plague our waking moments. They are not concerned about the threat of terrorism, floods, earthquakes, and hurricanes. Zombies do not care about most of the pesky concerns that fill our daily lives: they do not care about the weather, their appearance, their social status, their retirement plan, their morning commute, and petty office politics. Short of severe head injuries, zombies enjoy a type of immortality.
They are largely indifferent to pain and suffering. Their lives are highly centralized and simplified, since their needs and wants often revolve around just a few things, like brains or human flesh. But in other respects, the life of a zombie has characteristics many of us strive mightily to achieve. They seem to lack the complex cognition that’s critical for most of the activities we consider worthwhile – social interactions, intellectual pursuits, personal projects, etc. Their actions are guided entirely by impulses. Zombies wander around in constant hunger in a semi-decomposed state. In some respects, the idea that becoming a zombie is a bad thing borders on a platitude. In light of the harsh and uncertain reality of a survivor’s existence, one might wonder why a survivor doesn’t just give up and become a zombie. and they do so under constant threat from both zombies and other survivors.
In this post-apocalyptic world, survivors survive by mustering all their resources and energy. The social fabrics that bind civilization and civility unravel. A zombie-causing agent is released and spreads uncontrollably, causing an outbreak of zombies. The contemporary zombie narrative follows a fairly predictable path. SUBSCRIBE NOW Zombies & Philosophy What’s So Bad About Being A Zombie? Dien Ho asks if you’d be better off undead.
0 kommentar(er)
