Lit Circle Letter 2: World War Z

The second third of World War Z deals thoroughly with the stabilization that humanity faces in their terrible and desperate war against the undead. We see stories of incredible suffering, death, and destruction as people attempt to fight back against the walking corpses.

This section is also a deep insight on how humanity changes in dire times. It is thorough this change that we see the extreme ends of human nature, ranging from cowardice and fear, to strength and bravery. It also reveals the distinct qualities of the current world superpowers. It is these qualities that make or break a nation in this hypothetical doomsday scenario.

There is a deep and striking interview that gives insight into the class structure of America. It is the division between the day laborers who get their hands dirty and earn little, to the high and mighty CEO's that sit comfortably at their desks. In a zombie apocalypse, the CEO's are pointless when it comes to survival. An interview with the manager of the rebuilding program in the war torn American explains it quite well:

Yes there was racism, but there was also classism. You're a high-powered corporate attorney. You've spent most of your life reviewing contracts, brokering deals, talking on the phone. That's what you're good at, that's what makes you rich and what allowed you to hire a plumber to fix your toilet, which allowed you to keep talking on your phone. The more work you do, the more money you make, the more peons you hire to free you up to make more money. That's the way the world works. But one day it doesn't. No one needs a contract reviewed or a deal brokered. What it does need is toilets fixed. And suddenly that peon is your teacher, maybe even your boss. For some, this was scarier that the living dead. (140)

And isn't this the ultimate symbolism for the American elitist society? With the growing dependence on technology and other forms of life easing methods, less and less people are turning to menial labor to get things done. What isn't being considered is what happens when these things are suddenly taken away, or when they no longer work. What happens then?

In a way, it a sort of secret slavery that goes on. Money is the one big controlling factor here, and people don't mind digging through mountains of garbage if they are paid millions. And some don't even consider that because they find it degrading and insulting. Why do it when you can hire someone else to do it for you?

Not only is it laziness, it's also stroking the inner ego when it comes to living in America. This is not to say every person who hires others to do their dirty work is bad. They might honestly have no experience in that area of work to do it themselves. The factor I'm trying to address here is whether they would be willing to learn the trade given the circumstances. Whether they would be willing to swallow their pride and show some humility if it means surviving.

It goes deep into the psychology of the average American when it is truly put to the test. World War Z explains what people are willing to do or not do in Armageddon circumstances. In the context of the American government, it is the test of morals. The fictional former American vice president can testify:

So many of his proposals looked crazy at first glance, but once you peeled back the first layer, you realized that underneath there existed a core of irrefutable logic. Take the new punishment laws, those really set me off. Putting people in stocks? Whipping them in town squares!?! What was this, Old Salem, the Taliban's Afghanistan? It sounded barbaric, un-American, until you thought about the options. What were you going to do with the thieves and looters, put them in prison? Who would that help? Who could afford to divert able-bodied citizens to feed other able-bodied citizens? More importantly, why remove the punished from society when they could serve as a such a valuable deterrent? (149)

Notice the words "un-American" and "barbaric". The truth is that practicality is valued much more than morality when the end is nigh. This isn't just a societal shift in thinking due to circumstance. The real world away from this fictional zombie apocalypse has countries that look down upon each other because of the clash of ethics and morals. This is why the world can never fully cooperate, even if you take the Armageddon situation out of the equation. It's just human nature.

One of the resulting ironies of this "practical government" thinking manifests itself quite clearly in Word War Z. Because of the zombie invasion in mainland America, many survivors flock to Cuba for its natural defensive capability as an island. This results in the economically weak island nation to become one of the most successful market economies after the war's conclusion. It is perhaps the greatest criticism and insult of American government, while eerily mirroring it:

Of course our new Latin superpower is anything but idyllic. We have hundreds of political parties and more special interest groups than sands on our beaches. We have strikes, we have riots, we have protests, it seems, almost every day. You can see why Che ducked out right after the revolution. It's a lot easier to blow up trains than to make them run on time. What is it that Mister Churchill used to say? "Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others." (233)

Superpowers being anything but idyllic: the notion of no perfect society, even if it is powerful. This is America. Hundreds of political parties and special interest groups: America. Daily strikes, riots and protests: America. A lot easier to blow trains than to make them run on time: America in the Middle East. "Democracy is the worst form of government": addressing the preconceived notion that democracy is the best form of government.

Let me remind you that the need for democracy has cost the world several million people in casualties in assorted wars. The current American government is what dragged America into the Middle East.

Alas, praise the political undertones that a simple zombie book can give you.