Post-Apocalyptic Desires, Science Distrust, and the De(con)

145 Pages·2017·1.22 MB·English

University of Colorado, Boulder
CU Scholar
English Graduate Theses & Dissertations English
Spring 1-1-2014
Bring an Axe and Your Wildest Dreams: Post-
Apocalyptic Desires, Science Distrust, and the
De(con)struction of a Zombie Story
Samantha Jo Long
University of Colorado at Boulder, [email protected]
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Long, Samantha Jo, "Bring an Axe and Your Wildest Dreams: Post-Apocalyptic Desires, Science Distrust, and the De(con)struction of
a Zombie Story" (2014).English Graduate Theses & Dissertations. 62.
https://scholar.colorado.edu/engl_gradetds/62
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BRING AN AXE AND YOUR WILDEST DREAMS:
POST-APOCALYPTIC DESIRES, SCIENCE DISTRUST,
AND THE DE(CON)STRUCTION OF A ZOMBIE STORY
by
SAMANTHA JO LONG
B.A., Illinois State University, 2011

A thesis submitted to the
Faculty of the Graduate School of the
University of Colorado in partial fulfillment
of the requirement for the degree of
Master of Arts
Department of English
2014
This thesis entitled:
Bring an Axe and Your Wildest Dreams:
Post-Apocalyptic Desires, Science Distrust, and the De(con)struction of a Zombie Story
written by Samantha Jo Long
has been approved for the Department of English

Richelle Munkhoff

Stephen Graham Jones

Date _

The final copy of this thesis has been examined by the signatories, and we
Find that both the content and the form meet acceptable presentation standards
Of scholarly work in the above mentioned discipline.
iii

Long, Samantha Jo (M.A., English)
Bring an Axe and Your Wildest Dreams: Post-Apocalyptic Desires, Science Distrust, and the
De(con)struction of a Zombie Story
Thesis directed by Assistant Professor Richelle Munkhoff

Observing the current popularity of the zombie narrative in American culture, this thesis
explores the questions “why zombie?” and “why now?” through a combination of research and
the creation of an original zombie story. Moving beyond existing criticism which argues that the
zombie transforms to fit each generation’s specific fears, I argue that zombie movies, novels, and
video games from George A. Romero-onwards continually speak to a distrust of science and
scientific progress while additionally romanticizing the post-apocalyptic landscape.
Consequently, the zombie’s unprecedented mainstream popularity over the last fifteen years
could be read as symptomatic of this distrust intensifying, paralleling an increasing politicization
of science and a rise in apocalyptic thinking within the public sphere. Through the
deconstruction of my own zombie story, I uncover not only what these timely narratives tell us
about our perceptions of the future, but also how they can help us change them.

.
DEDICATION

In memoriam

To my dad, my biggest fan, who keeps me writing.
“And may your song always be sung.”

All of my love, always.
v
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Special thanks to Richelle Munkhoff for her guidance throughout this project, to my committee
members Adam Bradley and Stephen Graham Jones for their invaluable feedback, and to Greg
for his editing and patience with all-things-zombie over the past two years.
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CONTENTS

PROLOGUE……….……………………..……………………………………..……...1

CHAPTER

I. A WANNABE ZOMBIE WRITER..........................................................2

II. SOLEMN SOLON SPRINGS, WISCONSIN ..........................................7

III. A BRIEF HISTORY OF “WHY ZOMBIES?” ........................................9

IV. THE PUSH NORTH ...............................................................................17

V. APOCALYPSE NOW? ..........................................................................20

VI. WALKIN’ TALL MACHINE GUN MAN ............................................31

VII. THE POST-APOCALYPTIC DREAM ..................................................35

VIII. REUNION ...............................................................................................42

IX. MAD SCIENCE......................................................................................44

X. DREAMLAND .......................................................................................50

XI. INTERLUDE ..........................................................................................52

XII. FANTASYLAND ...................................................................................53

XIII. WHO’S AFRAID OF SCIENCE? ...........................................................60

XIV. RED IN THE MORNING .......................................................................65

XV. IN THE RIGHT CORNER .....................................................................68

XVI. ALL ABOARD .......................................................................................74

XVII. AND IN THE LEFT ................................................................................83

XVIII. HOME ON THE RANGE .......................................................................91

XIX. SHORT LISTS .........................................................................................93

XX. ANIMAL .................................................................................................94
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XXI. THE ANTI-ZOMBIE NARRATIVE ......................................................96

XXII. BREAK....................................................................................................97

XXIII. AUTHOR INTERVENTION................................................................102

XXIV. ZOMBIE EX MACHINA .....................................................................104

XXV. THE ZOMBIE AS NEGOTIATOR ......................................................106

XXVI. HOW DOES A RADIO WORK? .........................................................111

XXVII.DON’T KNOW MUCH ABOUT SCIENCE BOOKS ........................112

XXVIII.ALIVE 550 AM ....................................................................................119

EPILOGUE……….……………………..………………………………………......122

BIBLIOGRAPHY……………………..…………………………………………….125
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TABLES
Table

1. A Selection of Zombie Films by Year ..........................................................46

2. A Selection of Zombie Stories by Year ........................................................47

3. A Selection of Zombie Video Games by Year .............................................47
1

PROLOGUE

When I first began working on an English master’s thesis, I knew that a strictly by-the-
book approach would be insufficient for my ambitions. While my scholarly interest in zombies
started traditionally enough, borne from multiple seminars about plague narratives at the
beginning of my master’s program, a wholly scholarly mindset—and style—was not my chief
aspiration. After all, my interest in zombies and their contemporary significance stretched far
beyond formal educational experiences; I was a fan, and zombie books, movies, and video games
were my hobby. I longed to share my thoughts fan-to-fan as much as scholar-to-scholar, to write
about popular culture in a way that was welcoming to those who made up popular culture and
had made the undead worthy of such an inquiry in the first place. I also wanted to create—to
incorporate a zombie story I had begun just “for fun”—showing not only how research and the
production of fiction are intricately linked, but also revealing my process as I came to form an
argument (and as that argument subsequently transformed my fiction). “Why not do it?” My
advisor asked. So I decided to give it a shot.
The layout that follows is relatively simple. Each new chapter moves back and forth
between “academic” nonfiction and my story. Of course, as both develop the divisions become
less clear, reflecting their enmeshment. What hopefully results is an immersive experience,
where intellectual and creative mindsets meet to work on the biggest question of all—why
zombies now?