Dharma of the Dead: Zombies, Mortality and Buddhist Philosophy (Contributions to Zombie Studies)

With the increased popularity of zombies in recent years, scholars have considered why the undead have so captured the public imagination. This book argues that the zombie can be viewed as an object of meditation on death, a__memento mori__that makes the fact of mortality more approachable from what has been described as America's "death-denying culture." The existential crisis in zombie apocalyptic fiction brings to the fore the problem of humanity's search for meaning in an increasingly global and secular world. Zombies are analyzed in the context of Buddhist thought, in contrast with social and religious critiques from other works. With the increased popularity of zombies in recent years, scholars have considered why the undead have so captured the public imagination. This book argues that the zombie can be viewed as an object of meditation on death, a memento mori that makes the fact of mortality more approachable from what has been described as America's "death-denying culture." The existential crisis in zombie apocalyptic fiction brings to the fore the problem of humanity's search for meaning in an increasingly global and secular world. Zombies are analyzed in the context of Buddhist thought, in contrast with social and religious critiques from other works. Cover 1 Acknowledgments 7 Table of Contents 8 Acknowledgments 7 Introduction 10 Chapter One: The Haitian Origins of the Zombie 30 Chapter Two: The Evolution of the Cinematic Zombie 51 Chapter Three: Embodied Death 99 Chapter Four: Zombies and the Buddhist Meditation on Death 147 Chapter Notes 192 Bibliography 216 Filmography 234 Index 238 "The existential crisis in zombie apocalyptic fiction brings to the fore the problem of humanity's search for meaning in an increasingly global and secular world. Zombies are analyzed in the context of Buddhist thought, in contrast with social and religious critiques from other works"-- Provided by publisher