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Wednesday, November 10, 2010

My Zombie Article

Zombies- Real or Fact: Actual facts and research about the dead
Written and studied by Skyler Smith

History behind zombies
(Exact words cited from: http://www.umich.edu/~engl415/zombies/zombie.html)
The origin of the concept of zombiism stems from Haitian Voodoo culture. The word zombie--in Haitian it is "zombi"--means "spirit of the dead." Voodoo folklore contends that Bokors, Voodoo priests that were concerned with the study and application of black magic, posessed the ability to ressurrect the deceased through the administration of coup padre--coup padre is a powder that is issued orally, the primary ingredient of which is tetrodoxin, the deadly substance of the notoriously poisonous fou-fou, or "porcupine fish." According to lengend, "a zombi(e) is someone who has annoyed his or her family and community to the degree that they can no longer stand to live with this person. They respond by hiring a Bokor..to turn them into a zombi(e)." (Keegan, www.flmnh.ufl.edu)

Once they had been issued the coup padre, the subjects being prepared for their descent into zombidom would appear to die insofar as their heart rate would slow to a near stop, their breathing patterns would be greatly subdued and their body temperature would significantly decrease. The public, thinking that the person was dead, would bury him/ her as if they were a corpse. They would then be exhumed, still alive, by the Bokor and, although their physicality remained intact, their memory would be erased and they would be transformed into mindless drones. "Though still living, they remain under the Bokor's power until the Bokor dies." (Keegan, www.flmnh.ufl.edu)

(Exact words cited from: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1907970/the_history_behind_zombies.html)

Depending on which culture you are a part of the word zombie can hold a very different meaning to you. The two most prominent types of zombies are the classic Hollywood horror zombie,
but there is also Afro-Caribbean Voodoo zombie. Since the Voodoo zombie is significantly older and has apparently inspired numerous zombie tales I will begin with that.

Within the voodoo religion itself there is often two different zombie types, depending on which part of the world you are in.

A sorcerer or 'bokor' has the power to revive the dead; this is usually done using certain medicines or rituals, which revive the body of the deceased, without the soul, rendering it completely under the bokor's control.

There are also tales within the voodoo religion of murderous zombies attacking any humans in its proximity. Apparently this happens when the soul remains trapped inside the revived body; many tales blame this on the revival ceremony being done improperly or by a very inexperienced individual.

The 'modern' zombie is never usually anything like voodoo folklore. Most zombie tales begin with a strange virus or disease sweeping the nation, or globe, usually affecting the brain, and causing humans to become enraged and murderous. A lot of the 'classic' zombie stories, such as George A. Romero's work or the early 'Resident Evil' series for example, depict zombies as intensely slow moving with extremely heightened senses. Regardless of the fact that they are slow, these zombies are terrifying considering that they seem completely unaware of their physical limitations, and so will continue their pursuit under ant circumstances, with many victims being caught simply because they are in an enclosed space or exhausted.

Within the last few years, however, there has been an improvement on the zombie myth. Films emerged depicting zombie outbreaks in our modern world and the struggle we would hypothetically have to control it. It was after this that running was introduced. What could possible be more terrifying than a creature that is completely in control of it's body, with an animalistic lust for blood and no reaction to it's physical
limitations? I, personally, have yet to find it.

A new breed of smarter zombies streamed onto our screens. They will chase their prey until they catch them, would wait outside a secure building full of humans attempting entry after entry and starve to death that leave. These zombies were still almost brain-dead, yes, but their creators gave them a survival instinct, changing everything. Classic horror zombies walk around moaning with their arms outstretched, slowing perusing their prey, walking blindly into any trap or off any ledge ahead of them, modern zombies on the other hand are also aware of the rules of self preservation, so they will avoid walking off an especially large cliff or into an obvious trap; they are more akin to animals than human.

In conclusion, the 'truth' about zombies depends on whether you choose to accept them as a figment of some writer's overactive imagination, or a real part of a long-survived religion.

(Exact words cited from: http://www.forbes.com/2009/10/29/oreilly-godzilla-science-technology-breakthroughs-zombies.html)

The atomic bombs that dropped on Japan in 1945 inspired movie director Ishiro Honda to give the world the big, bad, grey monster, born of irresponsible nuclear weapons tests that we know to this day as Godzilla. Godzilla was, quite literally, the personification of humanity's science and technology gone bad. The message was simple: With atomic weapons, we had unleashed a monster that was beyond our ability to control.

In the West, Godzilla's cautionary tale (and tail) never really took hold. To Americans, Godzilla was just a guy in a rubber suit stepping on model houses. But that's not to say that the West hasn't had its own cinematic symbol of science run amuck. Instead of giant irradiated monsters, our preferred poison has been flesh-eating zombies.

Until George Romero's landmark 1968 film, Night of the Living Dead, zombies in movies usually were created from voodoo or magic (or aliens, as featured in Ed Wood's groundbreakingly awful Plan 9 From Outer Space.) Romero gave us brain-munching corpses produced from a space probe blowing up in the atmosphere. Once again, the monsters were created by our out-of-control technology.

Night of the Living Dead didn't spawn an immediate clutch of imitators, possibly because it came in the midst of America's race to the moon and most people were hopeful about advances in science. But when Romero returned with Dawn of the Dead in 1978, that optimism had already begun to fade. By 1984's C.H.U.D., disasters such as Three Mile Island had primed the movie-going public for the idea of a horde of killer zombies created by nuclear waste.

Along with nuclear waste and mysterious space-borne radiation, pandemic plagues have also spawned zombies. This zombie type has become the dominant movie form over the last few decades, no doubt a reaction to AIDS, Ebola, cloning, genetically modified foods and the remainder of the brave new world of biotechnology.

It seems you can't throw a half-eaten cerebrum these days without hitting a posse of zombies brought to life by some kind of biological mishap (28 Days Later, Resident Evil, Planet Terror, Quarantine). Like Godzilla, zombies keep up with the times, always ready to mirror whatever aspect of science and technology people feel most uncertain about at the moment.

Recap: Finishing up to these reasons, you have concluded that zombies are (were) real creatures. They were created by Voodo/witchcraft to do chores for the living (like slavery). Also that zombies in movies aren't as they seem, or as some people say...

Any Questions or information?
Weather we know zombies are real or not, some have claim to have seen them. (If you have had any history behind zombies, or had any experiences yourself, please visit http://skylers411.blogspot.com/ to message/contact me).

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