Resurrecting the Humanity of the Undead: Humanism and Posthumanism in Zombie Films

The popularity of zombies has reached new heights within the last few decades, becoming a viral media sensation. The zombie has spread from films into new forms of media and infected many aspects of life, amassing hordes of fans along the way. Zombies have even moved beyond the screen to take over popular events such as world-wide zombie crawls , zombie-themed races, and even zombie burlesque shows. No one is safe from the ever-present zombie. This thesis will examine this pop culture phenomenon through current trends in modern zombie films and explore how these films comment on cultural fears and concerns. Ultimately, this project explores how modern zombie films portray the conflict between humanist and posthumanist ideals and ask an especially pressing question of the postmodern era- what does it mean to be human