Introduction/ Hypothesis
The article “Durkheim’s ‘Suicide’ in the Zombie Apocalypse” by Mueller, Anna S., Seth Abrutyn, and Melissa Osborne. 2017 explores a horrifying situation where society and people are profoundly disturbed by the occurrence of a Zombie apocalypse, an event that causes cataclysmic changes in societal structures. Essential to this exploration, then, is the overarching motif of suicide embedded in chaos apocalypses, which often permeates popular culture with shows such as “The Walking Dead” and thus forms a case study for understanding how riots actually trigger suicidal tendencies. Suppose there is an emergency installation office. His social integration and moral regulation theories become handy tools to analyze the psychological effects of breaking down formal society during such disastrous occasions. The hypothesis from this article supposes that once the clothes of traditional societal norms begin to go apart, people tend more towards committing suicide. This clicks very well with the theories that Durkheim had already defined, where low social integration and no moral guidelines produce various kinds of suicide. Applying the sociological perspective of Durkheim and with an uncanny spectrum looming over everything as a backdrop to this zombie apocalypse, therefore, unravels for us a theoretical journey of how humans tend to react when faced with societal instability.
Methods
This article takes advantage of critical fundamental concepts that are derived from philosophical masterpieces developed by Émile Durkheim to elucidate the convoluted nature of social disintegration and suicide in a structured framework during an identified episode defined as zombie doomsday. Instead of common empirical approaches, the study is performed on the basis of thought experiments with critical representatives from “The Walking Dead” – Rick Grimes and Dr. Edwin Jenner. These characters serve to be representative cases through which one can delve into the impact of social incorporation and moral discipline on individual behavior towards the apocalypse. The point that the article is trying to make sharper about Durkheim’s theories here is that it contrasts between two kinds of experience -that which uses social integration within a small group – “you are not alone” feeling such as in Rick who does not lead so and therefore outside any seat, versus Edwin whose existential-egoistic state brings him down into an egoistic-an This methodological approach is grounded on the hypothetical but realistic situation that enables studying identity and social ties as mental condition factors when the society itself disintegrates at an unprecedented rate, through this particular perspective. The study seeks to contribute theoretically to the understanding of suicide in a spine of extreme social dislocation (Mueller et al., 2017).
Findings
Based on the article, the findings are mainly drawn from the circumstances surrounding the characters of Rick Grimes and Dr. Edwin Jenner. Social integration within a small group can act as an agent of positive change in mental health outcomes such that it verifies identity and attachment for Rick. On the other hand, Dr. Jenner’s case pertains to egoistic-anomic suicide in which identity attachments and especially loss of them are accentuated as causes for vulnerability to suicidal behavior (Mueller et al., 2017). The article offers refined theoretical propositions derived from these findings.
Reflection
After reading the article, I find it interesting to see how resilience and readiness are examined by applying a zombie apocalypse scenario. The thought experiment that uses “Walking Dead” characters puts theories of sociology and popular culture together, making the problematic sociological notions approachable. Comparing the unreal world of vampires and Durkheim’s grounds on social creation, we see an intense connection between traditionalist disintegration in society from among individuals and such universal consequences. However, questions arise about the applicability of credentials obtained from a fictitious setting to real life. While the article does an excellent job of promoting social integration and identity as essential factors in reducing vulnerability to suicide, one must take into account that this is just speculation.
Furthermore, the lack of empirical data and the use of only fictional instances may reduce its applicability to real problems in society. In a broader meaning, this approach makes us think about the limits of empirical research and theoretical speculation within sociology. Despite all this, the article triggers critical thinking on suicide under severe surroundings and calls for renewing an appraisal of Durkheim’s ideas via an atypical perspective. It emphasizes the interdisciplinary potential of sociological theory when taken creatively and encourages further investigation into how fictional stories interact with sociological inquiry.
Reference
Mueller, A. S., Abrutyn, S., & Osborne, M. (2017). Durkheim’s “Suicide” in the Zombie Apocalypse. Contexts. https://doi.org/10.1177/1536504217714260
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