Look around you. Our
society is in a current state of upheaval. Every day there is a new story in
the media about protests turned into riots turned into destruction and looting,
or a new victim of police brutality, or another officer ambushed and killed, or
a murder-suicide. Seeing the violence
and aggression happening in the world today I can't help but to agree with
Bishop’s point that, “...Kirkman’s The
Walking Dead comic series, sheds a harsh light upon the potential
devolution of humanity - that we have become chaotic creatures of selfishness,
violence, and unchecked aggression who do more damage to ourselves and the
world around us than any reanimated corpse ever could” (74). Terrorism is still a real threat,
neighborhoods and communities aren't as safe as they used to be, and we are so
quick to spew hateful words that we forgot what it means to be kind and to look
out for one another.
It's a harsh reality and I often wonder how we got
here. We are no longer in a hunter-gatherer society where survival is our first and often only instinct yet we are still in kill or be killed mode. Is it the media perpetuating
violence? Is it the shows we are watching? Have we become so focused on
ourselves that we are blinded to the plights of others? When we see those in need do we help or do we
look away? There is so much hate in the
world right now; so much aggression and close-mindedness that it becomes hard
to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
But the question is, how do we go back? Do we really want to be a worse nightmare
than zombies? How sad is that?! How do we restore a sense of community,
unity, and respect for one another? We
don't have to agree with each other to listen and understand. We all have such unique experiences and
perspectives. We come from different backgrounds, different cultures, and
different religions. There is plenty of
hate in our history without us adding more to it. We may not be up against a zombie apocalypse, but we still have very real threats and so far we are not handling them well. I don't know for sure how to fix it and it may seem like childish ideals
but I believe we can become a race of respect and empathy. It may take a while but if each person
commits to a new way of thinking I believe it could happen…
Well... this blog got a little heavy, so to lighten it up a
bit, here’s a "zombie" scene from the movie Stepbrothers:
Sources:
1. Bishop, Kyle W. “Battling Monsters and Becoming Monstrous:
Human Devolution in The Walking Dead."
Ed. Marina Levina and Diem-My T. Bui. Monster
Culture in the 21st Century: A Reader. New York: Bloomsbury
Academic, an Imprint of Bloomsbury Plc, 2013. 73-85. Print.
2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6hOMKQTC7w
I’m sorry to be a super downer, but I do not think that we will able to get to a place where all of us are respectful and empathetic with one another. I think that we gave up on that idea a long time ago. As discussed in class, zombies may represent a lot of things, but most importantly they help reveal the truth about our society and warn us of what we are becoming or what we are. We are beings who need dominance and power. We crave superiority over others and we thrive when others fail. (Obviously not everybody, but many). The Walking Dead serves as an example that no matter what, we are always craving those things, even when we need each other the most. This is 2016 and we do not need to act the way we do to survive, yet we are still a pretty selfish and messed up society. However, that does not mean that we, as individuals, should try to be good. Being good is what should motivate us and is what we should strive for. Even though I don’t think we’ll get there, I still hope and work for a better welcoming and united society.
ReplyDeleteInstinct is a tricky thing. I believe most people will look out for their own self-interest and their family's best interests before they consider others. Although we do not have to fight to find food every day, we still have to fight for jobs to earn money to get the food... if you think about it, although the structure of our society is different, the people in it are still the same. I'm not sure how we can restore unity, because like you said, people have very different backgrounds and opinions. I think it will be hard to find a solution that literally everyone agrees on. And as such, there will always be conflict.
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