EATING RITES: (RE)HUMANISED ZOMBIE AND SPECIESIST SACRIFICE IN WARM BODIES AND IN THE FLESH

Abstract

MY THESIS BRINGS GOTHIC AND ANIMAL STUDIES INTO CONVERSATION TO EXAMINE THE VIOLENCE OF EATING RITUALS IN HUMAN CULTURE TOWARDS THE ANIMALS AND ANIMALITY. EATING IS CONCEPTUALISED IN THREE REGISTERS?LITERAL, SYMBOLIC, AND DISCURSIVE?AND EXPLORED THROUGH THE LENS OF THE CONTEMPORARY GOTHIC IN POPULAR CULTURE, WHERE A PARTICULAR TRENDING MOTIF OF THE REHUMANISED ZOMBIE STRETCHES THE BIOLOGICAL AND ONTOLOGICAL LOGIC OF THE MONSTER SPECIES MYTHOLOGY BY RETURNING THE ZOMBIE TO ITS ORIGINAL HUMAN STATE. JONATHAN LEVINE?S FILM ADAPTATION OF WARM BODIES (2013) AND DOMINIC MITCHELL?S ZOMBIE TV DRAMA IN THE FLESH (2013- ) DEMONSTRATE HOW THESE THREE EATING MODES ARE ENACTED THROUGH THE NARRATIVE OF GOTHIC REHUMANISATION. THE IMPLICATION OF THIS TRIPARTITE METONYMIC EATING IS THAT THEY ARE ALL PREDICATED ON THE SPECIESIST LOGIC OF COMPULSORILY SACRIFICING THE NONHUMAN OTHER?ZOMBIE AND ANIMAL. THE FIGURE OF THE REHUMANISED ZOMBIE IN WARM BODIES AND IN THE FLESH THUS NOT ONLY PERFORMS BUT ALSO NATU