Redefining Zombie

The media attention of The Crazies this past week has caused a hoard of articles rising from the unknown to discuss the difference between zombie and non-zombies. Let me begin by debunking all the non-zombie claims at once.

If it is covered in blood, is running at you with a murderous glazed over look, and was created/inspired by George A. Remero, then it's a zombie. No, I don't want to hear your 'justifications' like "but it was an alien parasite" or "he's just a bit ill". They are zombies. Not just the ones from The Crazies, but all of them. Let's look at a few definitions.

Zombi: a dead body that has been brought back to life by a supernatural force

Note the spelling. Zombi without an 'e' at the end is a word that originates from Haitian culture. Brought to America in the 1920's, the term was in referencing a practice from the Voodoo religion. The zombi was thought to be a dead person brought back to life by a 'bokor' (Voodoo Priest), and then under the priests control. Scientists that have studied the religion and have found that it was most likely caused by a combination of drugs that caused a near death state in the victim, followed by a trance that allowed control over their will by voice suggestion. This theory is largely untested, and controversial, but that is where the term comes from. The origin of the very word was used in reference to the dead rising solely by magic, and has ties to still living humans instead of the actual dead.

Ghoul: a folkloric monster associated with graveyards and consuming human flesh, often classified as undead.

Before the term "Zombie" was popularized, the modern zombie was a nameless creature dating back to the begining of litereature itself. In Gilgamesh, goddess Ishtar threatens the following:

I shall bring up the dead to consume the living,

I shall make the dead outnumber the living

One Thousand and One Nights (Origin of Aladdin) labels a similar creature as a Ghoul. The term Ghoul does indicate a creature that is undead, and it wasn't until the mid 1970s that the word zombie was adopted as a replacement for ghoul. The Italian title for the 1968 Night of the Living dead was dubbed Zombi, and after the unauthorized sequel Zombie 2, the name stuck. This change in definition, from requiring a Voodoo curse to now just being undead has only been around for 40 years, and the definition has been changing the entire time.

Living Dead: a blanket term for various films and series that all originated with the seminal 1968 zombie movie Night of the Living Dead created by George A. Romero and John A. Russo.

George Romero popularized zombies in the 1968 classic Night of the Living Dead. Much like the 1000 BC reference in Gilgamesh, Romero also did not use the term. The film portrayed zombies as slow and weak reanimated corpses that may have originated from radiation from a space probe. Romero has updated his zombies as he expands on his works to the point that zombies have been show to posses basic levels of speech. Modern audiences have required more thorough explanations for supernatural events, and Romero has evolved his zombies with these expectations.

Movies like 28 Days Later have used viruses as reasons for zombies, and even Zombieland defined its creatures as sufferers of an advanced form of Mad Cow. Slither used aliens to start the apocalypse, and many games like Dead Rising have followed suit with alien brain parasites. None of these specifically have the dead being brought back, but I argue that all contain zombies. The methods of causing the zombie outbreak are often an important role in the stories, but secondary to the the focus of fighting bloodthirsty, crazed killers.

It's important to know why it matters. As a fan of zombies, I argue that we not only need more zombies in our culture, but we also need more fans. Someone may go to The Crazies, and if they enjoyed the elements of the film, such as suspense, apocalyptic setting, and survival horror, they should know that they just named the elements of nearly all zombie movies.

So what really makes a zombie. Let's break down the common elements.

1) Undead

2) Cannibalistic

3) Violent

4) Primal

5) Swarms

6) Enhanced speed

7) Deteriorate speed

8) Enhanced strength

9) Enhanced vitality

10) Infectious

11) Rotting

12) Moaning

13) Screaming

Speed, strength, intelligence, vitality, degree of decomposition, and noises vary greatly in the genre. Staples of early zombies like slow moving, groaning, thoughtless monsters have been replaced in newer iterations with fast, screaming, intelligent creatures, in even Romero's own continuing series.

I think it's time to take a look at the list, and agree that if it's close to a zombie, then we'll call it one. I say we welcome all who wish to join our zombie revolution. I propose a new definition.

Zombie: A human that has lost all rationality, often coupled with physical attribute changes in speed and strength due to adrenaline or deterioration, whose sole purpose is to eat, infect, or kill other humans. Common causes are: Magic, Science, and Alien Parasites. The 'infection' is either easily transmitted by fluid contact, or occurred on a large scale by an external force. Zombies always cause or are part of swarms.