Brains!

The Zombie Zeitgeist Quiz™
by Candice Owens & Nicholas Kaufmann

Originally, zombies were known only as part of Voodoo folklore, pitiable (living) victims cursed by an evil priest who deprived them of self-will and used them as slave labor. The stereotype of the zombie—soulless, ambling servants with their arms out in front of them like sleepwalkers, occasionally uttering, "Yes master"—tapped into our fears of losing our freedom, our individuality and our very souls. With the advent of Hollywood and a shift to more secular concerns, zombies became less about losing your soul and more about losing your life.

As the living dead, zombies became a blank slate, a malleable horror icon that tapped into different fears for different generations. In our patented Zombie Zeitgeist Quiz™ below, use your delicious brains to match the zombie movie with the spirit of the time in which it was made. Answers are at the bottom of the page, genius.

1. White Zombie (1932)	A. The alienation and hostility of modern urban life.
2. The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies!!? (1964)	B. The end of European colonialism.
3. Plague of the Zombies (1966)	C. Post-9/11 fear of the "other."
4. Night of the Living Dead (1968)	D. Ha! Trick question. Not actually a zombie movie, but it was damn funny.
5. Dawn of the Dead (1978)	E. A new society devouring the old in 'Nam-era revolution.
6. Evil Dead 2 (1987)	F. The psychedelic go-go scene, man. Groovy.
7. Return of the Living Dead (1985)	G. The numbing tedium of the workaday world.
8. 28 Days Later (2002)	H. Mindless consumerism.
9. Dawn of the Dead (remake, 2004)	I. Upper-class exploitation of British mine workers.
10. Shaun of the Dead (2004)	J. Reagan-era faux punk, post-disco neo-nihilism...and the deliciousness of paramedics.

Answer key:

1 B; 2 F; 3 I; 4 E; 5 H; 6 D; 7 J; 8 A; 9 C; 10 G

The Zeitgeist Issue
We Are What...
...We Obsess On
...We Read
...We Say
...We Listen To
...We Rent

We Are Actually Zombies

There's no end to the awesome-ness!

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