What is a zombie?Basically. A zombie is a corpse that has it's basic motor skills in tact and has the basic instinct to feed. It is one of the so-called undead creatures. That would be the basic definition of a zombie in the horror/creature sense.
In a more scientific sense, it's probably a person (a live one) that lost all his brain functions except his basic motor skills, vis a vis, walking. I'm no psych-know-how person so I'm not really sure. But I'm certain that the term zombie is used on some people like those who watch too much TV.
The mythos and lore about the zombie is quite vast. In some cultures like here in the Philippines, the dead coming back to life is brought about by black magic and evil energies. In pop culture, the zombie effect can be brought about by a microorganism like a bacteria, parasite, or a virus and, like a disease, could infect others.
Let's run down some of the characteristics of a zombie.
Slow movement. This and its poor navigation skills makes it easy for its prey to escape it. However, in pop culture, there are some zombies that can run. e.g. Zombieland.
Basic instincts. The zombie is equipped with only the very basic functions; motor skills for movement. Though in some lore, they have all five senses. It is common for zombies to only have sight and hearing. They don't really need touch, taste, and smell. As seen in in many movies, severed limbs and other body parts don't seem to stop them from getting to their prey if the sense of touch (vis a vis feeling) is one of their senses or else they would be in constant pain.
Weakness. Since the brain is the control center of body, destroying the brain is the way to go when killing zombies. Hence, it is pretty easy to kill a zombie. One only needs to give the zombie a massive head trauma. Decapitation also works but the chomping still continues.
Not really a weakness. Unlike most of the dark creatures or undead, zombies don't mind having a little tan. The ultraviolet rays of the sun don't seem to bother them at all. They don't even need to rest, they could go on and on and on for all eternity, if they have to.
Relentless. Zombies are relentless. Cut off one of its limbs and it's still coming for you. A zombie with just its waist up can still crawl up to its victim (if it ever caught up to it). You'll probably be dead of starvation because of hiding and it's still coming for you.
Strength in numbers. With a properly placed hit on a head, a kid would probably win a one-on-one fight against a zombie. But even a troop well trained combatant armed to the teeth might not survive a zombie feeding frenzy.
Brings about the holocaust. Once zombies roam the streets, it's pretty much the end.
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