When Should You Feel Guilty For Killing a zombie?
Common ethics would lead one to say “never”. But after some thought we realize, what if they were a loved one, a life long friend, or maybe just a person who caught a disease. We have to remember that zombies “used to be people”(Duke par 3). When killing zombies one might say that they are no more different than shooting a bear that is trying to kill you. But there is also a person that used to be. You aren’t just killing a zombie, you are ending someone’s life
According to the gaming world, zombies can be human or inhuman. Games Like The Walking Dead portray the zombies as more human like. they are slow and sometimes killing one can get emotional. In the TV show, “one of the first characters we meet is a man who is being followed by his zombified wife”(Duke par 2). Him and his son struggle with the idea of putting her down. This conflict shows that all zombies once had loved ones. Once had parents who wanted them to succeed in life, or had a lover that is wondering where they are. This is the exact opposite of the video game Left For Dead, where in which you mow down zombies like weeds on a hot Saturday afternoon.there are many different points on zombies but they are all still human.
In Pop Bioethics Kyle Munkittrick discusses the more ethic issues. “To answer the question, I think there are some things we can’t know in a realistic situation so we have to make assumptions”(Munkittrick par 9). He describes that one of the assumptions we have to make is that we live in a realist, materialistic world. That means no magic, demons, souls escaping hell, etc. so this has to be some sort of virus. The next assumtion is that these are the standard zombies; respond to stimuli, seek flesh, and that the disease is transmuted through bodily fluids getting in a mucus membrane or bites. Kyle then describe one of the issues of killing a zombie, which in this case is desecrating a corpse. He describes that dignity of the body is of utmost importance. “I wont desecrate a corpse, therefore i won’t desecrate an animated corpse. Which is a problem when it wants to gobble my brains”(Munkittrick par 9). So then we realize that zombification in itself is desecration of a corpse and that killing it would actually be cleansing it of that desecration. The next issue that he tackles is , How infected is the person? Have they just been bitten? Or are they all the way down the rabbit hole? If so can they still think and feel pain? the honest answer to when they want to die is up to them before the infection takes place. Should they eant to die before turning into a mindless flesh eating monster, or do they want to be left and have fate decide?
Much unlike the last article this one tackles the mind of the infected person. It uses movies like Dawn of the Dead and Zombie Honeymoon It kicks off by asking the reader “What if zombies could use their brains”(Riley par 8). It goes on to explain the situation of Danny in Zombie Honeymoon. He is a person who is infected with the zombie virus and is slowly losing his sanity. In his slow descent into madness, he cant stop the urge to eat people. He knows that it is wrong but he cannot stop himself. The author then asks to love your zombie neighbor.”My discussion this far has approached the question of zombies eating humans being of equal or equivalent responsibility of humans killing zombies”(Riley par 11). What he is saying is that to zombies, eating people is like killing zombies to humans. They see us as a threat and decide to eradicate us
In conclusion,killing zombies is like if you were the victim of a murderer.If he had you backed in the alley, back against a wall well, they say a cornered animal will fight. You will put your life above the rest, but if you are being chased, you wouldn’t want to turn around and fight or just let him kill you? Im saying that you should never go out of your way to kill a zombie and, if anything, always avoid killing them. It is just like killing someones daughter, wifem husband, mom, or dad. You are killing someone that someone is still attached to
According to the gaming world, zombies can be human or inhuman. Games Like The Walking Dead portray the zombies as more human like. they are slow and sometimes killing one can get emotional. In the TV show, “one of the first characters we meet is a man who is being followed by his zombified wife”(Duke par 2). Him and his son struggle with the idea of putting her down. This conflict shows that all zombies once had loved ones. Once had parents who wanted them to succeed in life, or had a lover that is wondering where they are. This is the exact opposite of the video game Left For Dead, where in which you mow down zombies like weeds on a hot Saturday afternoon.there are many different points on zombies but they are all still human.
In Pop Bioethics Kyle Munkittrick discusses the more ethic issues. “To answer the question, I think there are some things we can’t know in a realistic situation so we have to make assumptions”(Munkittrick par 9). He describes that one of the assumptions we have to make is that we live in a realist, materialistic world. That means no magic, demons, souls escaping hell, etc. so this has to be some sort of virus. The next assumtion is that these are the standard zombies; respond to stimuli, seek flesh, and that the disease is transmuted through bodily fluids getting in a mucus membrane or bites. Kyle then describe one of the issues of killing a zombie, which in this case is desecrating a corpse. He describes that dignity of the body is of utmost importance. “I wont desecrate a corpse, therefore i won’t desecrate an animated corpse. Which is a problem when it wants to gobble my brains”(Munkittrick par 9). So then we realize that zombification in itself is desecration of a corpse and that killing it would actually be cleansing it of that desecration. The next issue that he tackles is , How infected is the person? Have they just been bitten? Or are they all the way down the rabbit hole? If so can they still think and feel pain? the honest answer to when they want to die is up to them before the infection takes place. Should they eant to die before turning into a mindless flesh eating monster, or do they want to be left and have fate decide?
Much unlike the last article this one tackles the mind of the infected person. It uses movies like Dawn of the Dead and Zombie Honeymoon It kicks off by asking the reader “What if zombies could use their brains”(Riley par 8). It goes on to explain the situation of Danny in Zombie Honeymoon. He is a person who is infected with the zombie virus and is slowly losing his sanity. In his slow descent into madness, he cant stop the urge to eat people. He knows that it is wrong but he cannot stop himself. The author then asks to love your zombie neighbor.”My discussion this far has approached the question of zombies eating humans being of equal or equivalent responsibility of humans killing zombies”(Riley par 11). What he is saying is that to zombies, eating people is like killing zombies to humans. They see us as a threat and decide to eradicate us
In conclusion,killing zombies is like if you were the victim of a murderer.If he had you backed in the alley, back against a wall well, they say a cornered animal will fight. You will put your life above the rest, but if you are being chased, you wouldn’t want to turn around and fight or just let him kill you? Im saying that you should never go out of your way to kill a zombie and, if anything, always avoid killing them. It is just like killing someones daughter, wifem husband, mom, or dad. You are killing someone that someone is still attached to
Works Cited
Munkittrick, Kyle. "The Ethics of Zombie Killing." Pop Bioethics. Bioethics, 11 Feb. 2012. Web. 10 Feb. 2017.
<http://www.popbioethics.com/2012/02/the-ethics-of-zombie-killing/>.
Duke, Shaun. "Are Zombies People? — The Morality of Zombies." The World in the Satin Bag. N.p., 07 June 2015. Web. 10 Feb. 2017. <http://shaunduke.net/are-zombies-people-morality-of-zombies-6/>.
Riley, Brendan. "The Undead Gourmet." The Undead Gourmet | Issue 96 | Philosophy Now. Philosophy Now, n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2017. <https://philosophynow.org/issues/96/The_Undead_Gourmet>.
<http://www.popbioethics.com/2012/02/the-ethics-of-zombie-killing/>.
Duke, Shaun. "Are Zombies People? — The Morality of Zombies." The World in the Satin Bag. N.p., 07 June 2015. Web. 10 Feb. 2017. <http://shaunduke.net/are-zombies-people-morality-of-zombies-6/>.
Riley, Brendan. "The Undead Gourmet." The Undead Gourmet | Issue 96 | Philosophy Now. Philosophy Now, n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2017. <https://philosophynow.org/issues/96/The_Undead_Gourmet>.