Date of Award

Spring 5-2013

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Communication & Theatre Arts

Program/Concentration

Lifespan and Digital Communication

Committee Director

Robert Arnett

Committee Member

E. James Baesler

Committee Member

Tim Anderson

Call Number for Print

Special Collections LD4331.C47 T67 2013

Abstract

Since the creation of the modern day zombie by George A. Romero in his directorial debut with the genre altering film Night of the Living Dead in 1968, zombie have been associated with becoming a metaphoric representation of social and cultural issues surrounding the times these films were released, with Romero's films being at the forefront of this phenomenon. A review of Romero's career including his influences was examined as well as the film history of the zombie subgenre, the connections it has to its fans and how the fans influenced the development of the genre. A survey was connected with 64 participants to exam two hypotheses. Hypotheses one seeks to exam the connection between age and fandom to the zombie genre. The second hypothesis seeks to exam the connection between level of fandom and metaphoric representation of the zombie as social or cultural issues. The results showing a correlation between the variables of age, fandom and metaphoric representation of zombies provides partial support for both hypotheses. The results are discussed with future research pertaining to levels of participation and seeking a connection between George A. Romero and zombies based on age are recommended.

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DOI

10.25777/j634-jy25

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