What We're Reading Now
Zombies: More Than Scary Monsters
17 June 2025
Geof read Zombies in Western Culture: A Twenty-First Century Crisis by John Vervaeke, Christopher Mastropietro, and Filip Miscevic. The book is a cultural analysis of the rise of the zombie monster as a metaphor for western cultures crisis of meaning.
Tags: geof read, mindfulness
Brains. Purpose. Meaning. Brains.
As a kid in the early 1980s, I grew up watching Godzilla movies on UHF TV. While the latex-costumed and model-heavy special effects are campy by today’s standards, Godzilla served as a powerful metaphor for the existential anxiety of the emerging nuclear age and the threat of nuclear warfare at the time. The first Godzilla film was released in 1954, a decade after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and is an example of “monster mythology.” Monster mythology suggests that horror and science fiction monsters do more than scare us; they serve as manifestations of cultural crises, fictitious mirrors of real-world fears.
Authors / researchers John Vervaeke, Christopher Mastropietro, and Filip Miscevic introduce zombies as a current monster mythology in their book Zombies in Western Culture: A Twenty-First Century Crisis. For the authors, zombies symbolize a “crisis of meaning” in modern culture, much like Godzilla represented the threat of nuclear holocaust in the last century. For Vervaeke, zombies symbolize our loss of agency, a disconnection from purpose and meaningful narratives, and the erosion of shared values that once provided a shared social orientation. The zombie itself (not just the genre) represents a state of "mindlessness."
Zombies and the Existential Crisis
The rise in prevalence of the zombie archetype in literature (World War Z), film (28 Days Later), and TV (The Walking Dead) reflects a broader existential crisis in Western culture. With the decline of traditional frameworks (like religion) and the fragmentation of societal norms, we find ourselves adrift. The zombie, as a metaphor for modern Western culture, embodies this state of being, roaming without purpose. Not alive, and not dead. The book draws several comparisons based on zombie characteristics, including some that seem uncomfortably familiar:
- “Zombies don’t talk. They aren’t mute or reticent. They simply have no language. They have nothing to say.”
- “Zombies are communal. With a twist. They are communal creatures in that they vaguely share proximity, but there is no accord among them… They are in company, but not together. They are surrounded, but each alone.”
- “Zombies are homeless. A zombie simply ‘shuffles,’ bungles absently from one place to the next. Not belonging anywhere, being from anywhere…”
- “Zombies are untouchable. Touch is the arbiter of ‘real.’ Those with whom we are intimate are more real to us. The objects we have handled are more real to us. Emotions we have felt are more real to us.”
The Zombie Anecdote
Since the zombie archetype symbolizes mindlessness, alienation, and disconnection, Vervaeke suggests cultivating mindfulness as an antidote to these conditions.
In the book’s broader framework, mindfulness is linked to cultivating wisdom, a way of restoring cognitive and existential social coherence in our fragmented world. For Vervaeke, wisdom is self-knowledge and counters foolishness. “Foolishness is when your capacity to engage your agency and pursue your goals is undermined and threatened by self-deception and self-destructive behavior, which is a perennial vulnerability to your cognition.” Wisdom enables transcendence from the zombie state.
Specifically, we can use mindfulness to:
- Respond versus React: Zombies represent a state of automatic, reactive existence, driven by base impulses rather than purpose. Mindfulness fosters awareness, intentionality, and presence, helping individuals break free from passive and unconscious habits like social media consumption or TV binging.
- Restore Meaning Through Direct Experience: The book highlights the loss of meaning-making structures like religion, tradition, and community narratives that nurture connection. Mindfulness encourages direct engagement with lived experience instead of outsourcing meaning. Joining a club aligned with your goals or values and engaging in activities that align with your purpose are ways to foster a personal sense of purpose. As an aside, Vervaeke, in a panel discussion on the Philosophy for Our Times from the Institute of Art and Innovation, suggests this when searching for meaning / mattering: “Ask yourself these two questions. What do I want to exist even if I don't? And how much of a difference do I make to it? If you've got good answers to both of those, you have meaning in life. If you have only the first but not the second, you're seeking. You have neither.” Look for experiences that allow you to contribute to both of these questions.
- Separate the Signal from the Noise: Vervaeke frequently discusses how relevance realization and our ability to discern what is meaningful and significant is at the core of cognition. Relevance realization allows us to select and zero in on the information that is meaningful or useful for a goal out of an overwhelmingly vast sea of potential inputs. Mindfulness strengthens this faculty, helping us attune to what matters in a world where traditional structures are fading.
Vervaeke’s exploration of the meaning-crisis through the zombie mythology reveals a loss of traditional narratives forcing individuals to confront an existential void; combined with rapid technological and social changes that foster alienation and isolation; and the resulting cultural displacement that leaves us socially unanchored (without meaning or purpose). While Zombies in Western Culture is a thorough exploration of the zombie as metaphor for meaning crisis, we have to look at Verveake’s other works for a hopeful solution. Here is a link to the podcast I mentioned earlier, during which Verveake outlines a hopeful and optimistic POV on meaning making.
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Rachel
Oct 22, 2010
If you’re interested in learning more about Switch, make sure to join Allison Partners at the Chamber Annual Business Expo on November 2nd for our series of book talks. Switch will be the featured book at 6:00pm.
Faye
Jan 10, 2011
Rachel. I couldn’t agree more that these books make excellent airplane reading; I’ve read the first and second on cross country trips and am saving the third for my next flight to CA. Your connection to the “messy” people stuff is right on, too, and while not the books’ focus, there are some interesting employer/employee story lines.
Rachel
Jan 13, 2011
“True happiness is found in simple, seemingly unremarkable things. But to be aware of little, quiet things, you need to be quiet inside. A high degree of alertness is required. Be still. Look. Listen. Be present.”
Wise words . . . and somehow easier to digest and follow when accompanied by such cute pictures!
Michael Latsko
Feb 15, 2011
Speaking of Dan Pink and the “why” of work, his latest column in the Telegraph speaks to Adam Grant’s research at the Wharton School on this same topic:
http://tinyurl.com/69368uz
Marijean Jaggers
Mar 09, 2011
This is so fantastic—I think we could all recap certain days in the Twittersphere and also come up with five memorable tweets that added value to our lives. I love that you captured your first day and that it was such a win for you. Welcome aboard Rachel—it’s so nice to have you there.
Linda Kolker
Mar 09, 2011
Your adventures are making me smile—and motivating me to re-engage with Twitter. Thanks for your great “beginner’s mind” observations.
Rachel Brozenske
Mar 09, 2011
Thanks, Marijean and Linda. It’s an adventure for sure, and I’m glad to be part of the conversation. Who knows what days 2 and beyond will bring?!
Maury Brown
Mar 09, 2011
Hi, Rachel!
Enjoyed reading from your authentic and personal voice. I learned something, too!
Cheers!
Andrea Heapes
Mar 09, 2011
Love this blog post Rachel! Congratulations on beginning the twitter journey!
Allison Partners
Mar 11, 2011
Hi Maury and Andrea,
Thanks for your comments . . . and for the encouragement to help keep me Twittering away. I’m learning new things each day.
Cathy Harding
Mar 30, 2011
Thank you for writing about this, Allison. I think an equally important question for me is what socioeconomic baggage or assumptions I bring with me. Past that, I could ask whether those assumptions help or hinder my relationships with others. Glad you got so much from the Festival of the Book.
Heather Evans
Apr 01, 2011
I started to write “We should all be so lucky to find someone as meaningful as Greer was in your life, Allison,” but I realize that luck has nothing to do with it. Your ability to go out and embrace what others turn away from is inspiring. Go out an let your light shine!
Natalie Brown
Apr 01, 2011
I know Greer would have enjoyed the dialogue, and the conversation would have been more interesting if she were involved. At Hampton (and clearly at UVA) she always did round out a conversation with “And what are you going to do about it?”. She left behind a great legacy in all the lives she touched.
Kellie S
Apr 01, 2011
Very nice Allison. When I read The Help, it made me think of my grandmother who was a domestic for a prominent white family in Gulfport, MS. She always maintained her dignity, her character and her autonomy. It was difficult at times but I truly believe she taught that family important life lessons with her presence. When she died 5 years ago, the children and grandchildren of that family attended her funeral and provided a generous gift to a charity in my grandmother’s name. It was quite touching. Thanks for honoring Greer and for sharing your story.
Susan Andrews
Apr 02, 2011
Allison, I worked with Greer at UVA. I found her to be very special, always engaging people and pulling them into a conversation that would not have existed without her unique communication style. Thanks for sharing your story and honoring Greer.
Allison Linney
Apr 02, 2011
Thanks to everyone for your comments so far. Last night at the 100 Black Men of Central Virginia event and at UVA’s Black Alumni weekend party, there were lots of observations and stories like the ones you’ve shared. It feels good to have these kinds of conversations and provacative qusetions like Cathy’s happening in many spaces. I’m grateful.
Bev Wann
Apr 02, 2011
Greer and I taught some Diversity workshops togther. I was naive and uninformed. I am grateful to her for providing me with a transformational education about racism. She lives on in my speech and actions.
M. Rick Turner
Apr 02, 2011
Thank you for sharing this wonderful tribute to Greer. I think about her often.We all miss her. You keep her spirit alive.
Allison Linney
Apr 05, 2011
Bev, I remember that naive and uninformed feeling well! Rick, it was great to see you at the 100 Black Men of Central Virignia event on Friday night. What a wonderful time we had!!
Eliza Phillips
Apr 08, 2011
Thank you for sharing. Being a mother, I am aware of the teams we need to build to make our families successful. The Help reminded me of how important it is to treat everyone with dignity and respect and to share my gratitude to all who help me along the way. Thank you again!