The Ultimate Walking Dead and Philosophy by Wayne Yuen

Author:Wayne Yuen
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780812699159
Publisher: Open Court
Published: 2015-12-03T00:00:00+00:00

Quasi-Theocratic Cannibal Cult (Also a Great Name for a Heavy Metal Band)

This brings us to theocracy, Greek for “rule by a god.” The problem with theocracies is that it is impossible to determine the authenticity of a divinely, mystically or magically inspired moral code. There is no rational test to determine the truth of supernaturally-based factual or moral claims derived from the Bible, Greek mythology, Charles Manson, witches’ cauldrons, or Pink Floyd acid trips.

Practically speaking, it’s also impossible to apply a divine code of moral governance except through human interpreters, who are subject to the fallibility problems associated with dictators. There are several reasons why these considerations do not lead many people who live in theocracies to revolution or even protest. They may stay silent out of fear and even we are nervous to use certain examples in a zombie essay!. They may be systematically kept ignorant of alternatives or indoctrinated in their youth by the government that rules them. Alternatively, they could simply accept the familiar.

Then, there is also the consideration that theocracy has a certain appeal, because inherent to the idea of a theocracy is that your theocracy is special. By being a member of an exclusive society, you become better and more deserving than other people. You and only people like you have seen the light. As to everyone else—who cares?

In The Walking Dead, the quasi-theocratic Terminus cult illustrates these problems in spades. By the end of Season Four, we know that members of the cult cannibalize people seeking safe refuge, serving them up in a folksy southern BBQ picnic bench area, replete with a matronly, seemingly-less-racist Paula Deen figure: “Let’s get you settled and we’ll make you a plate . . .”

The first few episodes of Season Five confirm the extent of the community’s depravity, as the hunters discuss the flavor of their prey, not content with mere subsistence. We learn that they have a quasi-religiously-derived “ethical” system that justifies their Homo sapiens feed-downs, which—if atmosphere is any indication—feature bibs and BBQ sauce. We know there is a quasi-religious basis to the community from the freaky, candle-and-such filled worship chamber that Rick and company flee through, and where Carol confronts the cannibalistic Paula Deen-esque figure.

Everywhere, the weirdo temple is decked out with slogans like “We First, Always.” This implies that members of the cult see themselves as a special class (inedible), as distinguished from non-members of the cult who are not special (good eatin’!). While the cannibalism of the group grabs the headlines, what makes the group quasi-theocratic is that its moral code is rooted in secret “knowledge” and ritual. Their creed, the necessity of which they claim to uniquely grasp, is, “You’re the butcher or you’re the cattle.” The quick destruction of the Terminus cult makes it difficult to fully assess their views to determine whether they truly believe that they were following the will of a deity, but their belief that their status as a chosen group gives them some authority for their actions seems clear.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.