The Zombie survival guide

”The dead walk among us. Zombies, ghouls – no matter what their label – these somnambulists are the greatest threat to humanity, other than humanity itself” 

(page 1). 

This is the beginning of the book The Zombie survival guide by Max Brooks. On first look, the book is a complete guide on how to survive the zombie apocalypse. The book is divided in 6 different chapters, from The Undead: Myths and realities to Weapons, Defense and Starting over in the undead world.

But if you look past the zombies and start read between the lines you will found another message. True, the book focuses on how to survive, but it has also an undertone of criticism. How do humans treat each other and do we take care of one and another?

The first sentence in the book says it all. The biggest threat against humankind is not environmental disasters or radiation from broke down nuclear plants, it is humanity itself. Take your time to reflect on that word, humanity. The dictionary tells us that humanity is all human beings collectively, the human race. So, the word itself is another term for people. But if you decompose the word to its components; human and –ity it has another meaning.

·        Human (adjective) - "Having or showing those positive aspects of nature and character regarded as distinguishing humans from other animals: an act of human kindness" or "Subject to or indicative of the weaknesses, imperfections, and fragility associated with humans" ^[1]

·         Ity – “the word in -ity usually means the quality of being what the adjective describes” ^[2]

So the word humanity refers to humans as kind, and that we have the power to be good, but also the part of us that makes it okay to make mistakes. Humans can choose to do an act of good or evil; then a new question arises. If it is so that a zombie lack of intelligence and only acts on impulse and behavior, can they be evil?

The book also describes the anatomy and behavior of the zombie and states an interesting fact. Zombies do not actually need food to survive and they don’t get any nutrition from flesh. But why do zombies then kill and eat humans, as well as animals? The answer is still a mystery but if you reflect on the need to feed, the hunger, humans have always been keen on killing to survive. So, is the zombie just a reflection of our hunger and greed?

The Zombie survival guide is an essential book if you want to survive the apocalypse, but it also contains criticism of the modern society and humankind.  If you have the book by your side during the zombie outbreak you will be fine, but what will happened when the world is dead? What will become of the humanity and fate of humans? Do we want to know?

“No matter what you will find, a no matter what challenges you will face, take heart in the knowledge that you have survived a catastrophe not seen since the extinction of the dinosaurs, a world ruled by the living dead.” 

(page 181)

Book reflection on:

The Zombie survival guide - Max Brooks

ISBN: 1-4000-4962-8

1] The free dictionary, Human 

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/human

Last visited 2013-12-18.

2] Etmology Dictionary, -ity,  

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=-ity&allowed_in_frame=0 , 

Last visited 2013-12-18.