Table of Contents
Introduction
Death has often been called the great equalizer. It comes for us all, and none of us are exempt from its cold and final embrace. The reality of death is its one of the very few undeniable and absolute truths of human existence. Perhaps this is why the idea of something that could trump this great truth is so terrifying and intriguing to us. What could humanity do if death ceased to be the final destination of the living?
For the last half-century, the living dead have thrived in our imaginations as the embodiment of all that we as human beings fear and despise. They come for us with gnashing teeth, and their bite is a curse of walking death. But these harbingers of Armageddon are seen as neither angels of death nor grim reapers. No, the undead hordes are shown as made up of our neighbors, our families, and our friends. And no matter how much we loved them during life, they have but one motivating desire to devour us and, in so doing, share with us their curse of undeath.
Not since arriving in the late 1960s have modern zombies had such a strong presence in pop culture. The living dead, figuratively speaking, are everywhere. And perhaps this should not be surprising. At a time when the world is in chaos, zombies have always arisen in the collective imagination of human beings.
In the late 60s, the world seemed to be falling ever deeper into despair and chaos. The United States was involved in an increasingly unsustainable conflict in Vietnam, fighting an enemy the likes of which had never been engaged. And the rising cost of this war was being worsened by soaring inflation rates, leading to a surge of civil unrest back home. And the Vietnam conflict was not the only issue on which the country was divided in opinion.
Martin Luther King Jr. led a movement for civil rights, bringing an end to the racial segregation that still occurred throughout the country. In their homes, Americans watched National Guardsmen spray trapped children with fire hoses. They watched as the Days of Rage race riots ripped the city of York, Pennsylvania, to shreds. And they watched as Kings peaceful quest for racial equality ended in his assassination. However, he was not the only great man of the time to die at the hands of assassins. The American people also witnessed, live on their television sets, the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and, shortly after, his younger brother Robert Kennedy. By 1968, it seemed as if the world had gone mad.
So why have the zombies returned to the American imagination with such fervor? And why now? Perhaps the answer to this lies in what has already been discussed. After all, the world of today is much like the world of 1968. The world is suffering from issues of sustainability, experiencing crises of finance and energy. The United States is involved in an increasingly unsustainable, two-front war against an enemy who fights with unprecedented guerilla/terrorist tactics. And on all these issues, the American people seem almost evenly divided in their opinions. Once again, it seems as if the entire world is losing its mind.
But why would zombies be so prevalent in the imaginations of the people at times of general chaos and uncertainty? Simply put, the living dead represent the absolute worst-case scenario for humankind. Nothing else even comes close to matching the desperate odds humanity would face in a zombie apocalypse. Zombies are the one thing that makes our world, no matter how insane it has become, seem well not so bad. Think of it this way. No matter how bad the world gets, zombies will always be there to offer us a twisted bright side. After all, things could be much worse the world could be overrun by hordes of homicidal living dead.
How to Use This Book
To offer a more effective and user-friendly reference on the many fascinating and gory facets of the living dead, Ive separated this book into four main parts. These parts are then further broken down into chapters by their respective subjects and types. The basic organization of The Complete Idiots Guide to Zombies can be summed up as follows:
In Part 1, The Zombie Shift, we begin by taking a look at the history of the living dead. From the dark rituals of Haitian Voodoo and ancient superstitions to the rise of radiation fears and virus phobias, zombies have always represented the worst elements of human civilization. In this part, we examine this relationship between the living and the deadbetween them and us. After all, in the end, it just might turn out that they are us.
In Part 2, Zombie Literature and Comics, we look at how zombies have been depicted in both written and illustrated forms. For the last hundred years, the idea of reanimating the dead has captivated the imaginations of countless readers of literature and comics alike. In the more modern medium of web comics, zombies have continued to exhibit a strong presence.
Part 3, Zombie Cinema and Pop Culture, examines the modern treatments of zombies in various aspects of modern culture. This part starts with a chapter discussing the first zombie films ever made. This will be followed up with a look into the works of George A. Romero, who sparked the modern zombie phenomenon in 1968 with his classic film Night of the Living Dead. It also looks at the many non-Romero zombie films (the good, the bad, and the ugly), as well as zombie-themed video games past and present.
Part 4, Zombies and Us, takes a look at the world of zombie fandom and the subculture of zombie survivalist groups. Zombies have a very real place in our modern world. For some, they offer a fun medium for social commentary. For others, the living dead offer a worst-case survival scenario, the preparation for which makes you ready to tackle the worst that reality could throw at you.
Extras
Moooooaaaaan...
These sidebars offer definitions and explanations for the various terms you will encounter in your reading.
Dont Get Bit!
These sidebars offer clarification for easily confused concepts, events, and words related to zombies, such as common misperceptions and similarities in spellings, plots, purposes, or actions.
Brains!
These sidebars offer facts related to the content of the text. Some of these simply offer interesting but extraneous side notes; others are directly related to the subject matter.
Anyone Smell That?
Sometimes the line between reality and fiction can become a little blurred. These sidebars act as reality checks, offering rational explanations for seemingly spectacular situations.
Acknowledgments
As always, I would like to thank everyone at Alpha Books who made this project possible. A special thanks to Randy Ladenheim-Gil and Megan Douglass for their amazing patience and unbending confidence. I would also like to thank Dr. Margaret Lowry and Dr. Tim Morris, as well as the entire English Department at University of Texas at Arlington, for putting up with my sporadic stress fits and general state of anxiety during this books completion.
Trademarks
All terms mentioned in this book that are known to be or are suspected of being trademarks or service marks have been appropriately capitalized. Alpha Books and Penguin Group (USA) Inc. cannot attest to the accuracy of this information. Use of a term in this book should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark.
