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Main Point.[]
The modern pop culture Zombie is characterized by feasting on human brains. The king of all zombie films, George Romero never showed zombies consuming human brains. It was not until the 1985 film Return of the Living Dead did zombies consumed brains. Dan O’ Bannon writer and director of Return of the Living Dead comments that Zombies feast on brains of the living because it makes them feel better by easing their pain. Jack Flacco validates O’ Bannon’s theory by stating, brains “provide zombies with the necessary endorphins to dull the pain of Rigor Mortis brought about by decomposition. The more brains, the less pain” (2013). In the media Zombie brain eating can be linked to The Simpsons. In the 1992 episode Treehouse of Horror segment Dial Z for Zombies, which is one of the earliest pieces of media to feature brain eating zombies. Human origin history indicates that humans did occasionally eat each other and sometimes it made sense to do so. However humans do not contain the same caloric value as other dietary animal option. Cannibalism was for ritual purposes rather than hunger. The headhunters of Papua New Guinea are known for their ritual cannibalism. Cannibalism is not universally practice due to the fact that it could be deadly. Prion diseases, fatal brain- eating malformations, can spread by consuming contaminated flesh of humans or other animals. The human brain is more contaminated with prions than any other body part. Examples include kuru, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans, and mad cow disease in animals. The kuru epidemic is associated with a ritual of feasting on the brains of the dead. Ultimately consuming human brains will result in humans becoming very ill.
Key Text.[]
Flacco, Jack. "Why do Zombies Eat Brains." Monday Mayhem. November 3, 2013. Accessed October 11, 2015. http://jackflacco.com/2013/11/04/why-do-zombies-eat-brains/
References.[]
Santa Maria. Cara. "Cannibalism: Is It Safe To Eat People?". Huffington Post Science. May 9, 2012. Accessed October 11, 2015. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/08/cannibalism_n_1501513.html
Smallwood, Karl. "Why Is it That Zombie Eat Brains?". Gizmodo. Decemeber 10, 2014. Accessed October 11, 2015. http://gizmodo.com/why-is-it-that-zombies-eat-brains-1669204056
Spitznagel, Eric. "George A. Romero: "Who Says Zombies Eat Brains?". Vanity Fair. May 27, 2010. Accessed October 11, 2015. http://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2010/05/george-romero
Sten, Victoria. "Not that I'm thinking about trying it, but is Cannibalism Unhealthy?". Science Line. January 21, 2008. Accessed October 11, 2015. http://scienceline.org/2008/01/ask-stern-cannibal/
Wolford, Ben. "Cannibalism, The High- Protein Diet You've Never Considered; Yields Fewer Calories Than Eating Other Animals." Medical Daily. June 28, 2014. Accessed October 11, 2015. http://www.medicaldaily.com/cannibalism-high-protein-diet-youve-never-considered-yields-fewer-calories-eating-other-animals