We are currently experiencing a resurgance of Zombie-fiction.  Everything from movies to novels to comics have become inundated with reference to the Undead.  Just think back to the number of Zombie films being made, or remade, in the past 10 years.  Off the top of my head there's the Resident Evil series of movies and video games, 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later, Zombieland, Dawn of the Dead, Shawn of the Dead, etc.  Seth Grahame-Smith's Pride and Prejudice, & Zombies recently created some buzz because of his use of Jane Austin as a starting point for Zombie fiction.  Austin purists disliked the idea of Austin's classic novel being tainted by the current obsession with the undead.  Yet, it has become widely popular, making it to the number 3 spot on the Time's bestseller list and requiring a second printing before being released in the UK. There is even a planned release of the sequal Pride and Prejudice, & Zombies: Dawn of the Dreafuls for May of 2010.

So what exactly is it about our fascination with the Walking Dead? Is it our cultural manifestation of our fear and fascination of death? Or is the truth closer to Geoff Bough, Revenant Magazine Editor in Chief's statement: "In preparing to rack my brain to determine why zombies interest me so much I drew a parallel between man and zombies. If you think about it, it’s really not that far fetched. They both possess the following similar characteristics; a lack of social interaction, minimal purpose or direction and a lust to consume. Now, I’m not saying that I think man has devolved into the walking dead but pointing out the declination of today’s social communication and values. It’s interesting to me that people just seem to be driven by some unnatural force and really have minimal respect for others."
          [Revenant Magazine is, by the way, the "Premiere Zombie Magazine" created for Zombie fans like us.  They bring us news, information, interesting articles and reviews, incredible artwork, and more.  So if you're a die-hard, or rather Zombie enthusiast check them out for all the latest on Zombies.]

Joelogon, blogger of Dumb Things I Have Done Lately, writes that perhaps our fascination with the Undead arises from the simplicity of the nature of fighting Zombies.  It's clear cut.  The only good Zombie, is a dead Zombie.  Simply put "You shoot them in the head, or you get eaten." It gives us a break from the complexity of our daily lives, politics, metaphors, and gives us an excuse to shoot a lot of people in the head. [Because the only way you truly know the Zombie's dead is to shoot it in the head, everyone knows this].  Because they're not people, they're not even animals, you're not going to get in trouble for killing the reanimated dead [Unless you go really beserker and think it's actually happening when it's not... but that's an entirely different problem.]

Whatever it is, our fascination with the dead, the undead, death versus the living, we've got a lot of literature out there that's all about the Zombie action.  For starters I'm going to bring up a novel/handbook that everyone probably has NOT heard of.  Bob Curran's Zombies: A Field Guide to the Walking Dead is not focused on popular cultures remythologized living dead.  He's done his research, and is out to share it with the rest of us.  Curran has explored the origins of the myths, legends, and folkore about the Undead.  "Curran traces the evolution of belief in the walking cadaver from its early inception in religious ideology to the "Resurrections" and cataleptics of 18th century Europe, from prehistoric tale to Arthurian romance. Zombies even examines the notion of the "living dead" in the world today--entities such as the "living mummies" of Japan." (From the provided book Synopsis).  Probably more academically researched based this isn't going to be a book for the average reader.  Those interested in the roots of the mythology of the living dead, and those wanting to explore those myths (maybe so they can create their own), will find it a useful resource for future reference.

And, of course, there's the Richard Matheson novel I Am Legend, published in 1954.  While not strictly about Zombies (Matheson's creatures are more vampiric in nature) he introduces a couple themes in Zombie Fiction that become important later on in history: the apocalypse brought about by diseas and the explaination of Zombies (or the Undead in general) by a biological or scientific mechanism.  Matheson's novel sets the ground work for later films and novels who use biology, viruses, infection, and science to create their monsters.  Much like Mary Shelly's Frankenstein, these creatures become much more than our simplified Zombie creatures.  They are not just our literal manifestation of fears and morbid fascination.  They are cultural critiques and satires about humanity, science, and how far some will go to find a way to make us all live forever.

[I had originally planned just one article on Zombie-fiction; however, after a devastating loss of over an hours worth of work I've decided to serialize it. Look for the next installment, coming soon!]

Part II can be found here and Part III here.