The loss of your mind, leaving your corpse to relentlessly shamble around to consume the flesh or brains of the living, are the most persistent tropes of the genre. Being a zombie in a classic sense means that your body is separated from your consciousness (some exceptions being the TV series iZOMBIE and the movie WARM BODIES). Zombification strikes a number of uniquely terrifying chords in the hearts of the living. Both Frankenstein's monster and Dracula, as conscious agents, were central protagonists in their own narratives. The spread of classic vampirism is somewhat magical, sometimes even intimate, limited in scope, and subject to certain rules in the sharing of body fluids between the vampire and victim. Dracula is definitely in the category of the undead protagonist, but in his various incarnations he viewed people as prey to quench his bloodlust. Making another monster, even a bride for Frankenstein’s creation, took a bit of effort. Frankenstein’s titular monster was in some respects a zombie, but his reanimated corpse possessed a functioning (albeit abnormal) brain that hungered mainly for acceptance and understanding. It’s not just being undead that makes zombies scary. What makes a zombie unique amongst Earth’s fearful monstrosities? Becoming a zombie is like being invited into a club that no one wants to join, or contracting a disease no one wants to have. There is just something about them and their mindless, rotting, insatiable hunger that chills the blood of the living. Zombies have been a reliable staple of the horror genre since NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968) set the rules for the ghouls. This article was commissioned to accompany Museum of the Moving Image's exhibition ' Living with The Walking Dead,' on view from June 25, 2022–January 1, 2023. Undead to Me: Zombification of People and Pests
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