Introduction
Popular TV shows and films such as The Walking Dead and 28 Days Later have popularized the “zombie” genre of movies. Zombies have become a hit in the popular culture as seen in literature and film; hence the fascination with the history of zombies. The purpose of this paper is to explore the history of zombies as well as how to manage a zombie apocalypses.
Cultural History of Zombies
According to Gandhi (2013), zombies have a rich history going back to the era of slavery. Historians have traced the history of zombies to the Haitian Creole traditions influenced by the African religious customs. Zombies are a product of spells by a voodoo sorcerer called a bokor (Gandhi, 2013). Bokor is a West African word, and it was brought to Haiti by slaves. People who practice the voodoo religion believe zombies are real and they are dead people revived by bokors. Bokors use traditional herbs, shells, fish, bones and other sacred items to create a concoction to wake the dead.
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The zombie narrative evolved further in Haiti as it was used by colonial masters to scare the slaves. Slaves from West Africa worked in sugar plantations in Haiti between 1625 and 1804 during the French rule. The folklore of zombie became popular during that time as an escapist fantasy. Zombies are enslaved by bokors, which was a reflection of the slavery under the French rule. The zombie narrative has changed over the years, especially with the rise of ‘zombie narrative’ in film and literature. Since the creation of the zombie film White Zombie, zombie myth exploded to become a frequent topic in the popular culture.
Zombie apocalyptic nature
The zombie apocalypse is a popular doomsday narrative. According to Pappas (2013), zombie apocalypse is not only popular in movies and literature as there are people who believe that there will be a zombie uprising and they will be responsible for the end of the world. The zombies will eat people, and only the lucky few will survive. Zombie apocalypse narrative is popular because it is a way of coping with the possibility of impending doom (Quiles, 2014). Catastrophic wars such as World War 2 or even the end of the world as predicted by the Bible often scare people, and a zombie apocalypse is a fictional (fun) version of the end of the world.
As much as the zombie apocalypse is quite popular, people are not losing much sleep over the idea because zombies are not real and they will not be real anytime soon. Popular movies have also shown that it is possible to survive a zombie apocalypse because zombies are slow. However, medical research shows that it is possible for zombies to exist when neurons fire the brain and reanimate the body leaving no functioning apart from the desire to eat.
Additionally, some diseases cause zombie-like traits in the victims such as hyperorality, leprosy, rabies, brain parasites and humanmade tampering. Hyperorality is the desire to put inappropriate objects in the mouth without recognizing the objects, and dementia can cause it. Alternatively, leprosy outbreak cause decaying skin and problems with walking such that patients with leprosy walk as if they are zombies. The most popular explanation for the zombie apocalypse is manmade tampering due to genetic modification.
Possible Spread
In most zombie apocalypse films, the films end with the discovery of a miracle cure once zombies have decimated the population. “zombiesm” is usually spread through infected saliva through a zombie bite. Zombies spread the virus through direct bites, making it easy to manage in comparison to airborne infections that spread quickly. Zombiesm is like rabies it causes anxiety, agitation, paranoia and aggressive behaviors. Zombies will try to bite their victims, thereby spreading the virus faster.
An article by Smith (2015) explores the possibility of a zombie epidemic. Smith describes zombie pathogens including the Solanum virus capable of attacking the brains of living organisms and controlling them. The virus is not dependent on the host body; thus all bodily functions cease to exist, and the host dies and is later reanimated into a zombie. The Solanum virus does not affect human beings, so far it affects potatoes only.
Nonetheless, Smith (2015) explores the different cases of fictional zombie pathogens in the movies, and how they can be modified and used to wipe the entire population. Movies and video game creators have popularized the “zombification” of fungi. Smith (2015) did not study a real zombie pathogen, but she used the zombie narrative to raise awareness of real-life pandemics. The CDC used the same strategy to urge people prepare for disasters, and given people’s obsession with zombies, the CDC website experienced a surge in traffic which brought down the servers (History.com, 2017).
Treatment of Infection
When treating ‘zombiesm,’epidemiologists have to identify the first case just like other epidemics involving biological agents. The first case occurs due to a laboratory accident or some weird form of mutation, and once the real cause has been identified, epidemiologists will work on understanding the transmission mode to identify a way of treating the condition.
As epidemiologists work to identify the cure, there are strategies for managing the situation such as quarantine. A quarantine strategy is the best way of keeping infected individuals in an isolated place to prevent further spread. However, an extreme measure of killing infected individuals can be pursued to remove infected individuals permanently. According to Smith (2015), the only way to address the zombie pandemic is through collaboration, communication, and preparations. Epidemiologists have to explore all the options and determine the best cause of action. In the traditional Haitian narrative, zombies are created by bokors, and only bokors are capable of treating the infection through a mix of ingredients and traditional rituals.
Conclusion and Summary
The modern day fascination with zombies persists because zombie narratives combine violence and doomsday themes. Zombie narratives have a fascinating history, they originate from West Africa, but they evolved under the voodoo tradition in Haiti. Since the first zombie narrative film, many films on zombies have been created. Zombies are also popular in literature and Halloween. Zombie narratives have popularized the survival for the fittest theme, a common doomsday theme. Some individuals believe that zombie apocalypse will occur, while others use medical conditions such as dementia and leprosy to argue that a zombie apocalypse is possible. There is no known treatment for a zombie apocalypse, but in case, zombies arise people are advised to build forts to isolate themselves from the zombies.
References
Gandhi, L. (2013, December 15). Zoinks! Tracing the History Of 'Zombie' From Haiti To The CDC. Retrieved June 18, 2018, from https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2013/12/13/250844800/zoinks-tracing-the- history-of-zombie-from-haiti-to-the-cdc
History.com Staff. (2017). Zombies. Retrieved June 18, 2018, from https://www.history.com/topics/history-of-zombies
Pappas, S. (2013, Feb. 20). Why We're Obsessed with the Zombie Apocalypse. Livescience. Retrieved from: https://www.livescience.com/27287-zombie-apocalypse-world-war- ii.html
Quiles, D. R. (2014). Dead Boars, Viruses, and Zombies: Roberto Jacoby's Art History. Art Journal , 73 (3), 38-55.
Smith, T. C. (2015). Zombie infections: epidemiology, treatment, and prevention. Bmj , 351 , h6423.
