World War Z: Kill Yourself or Eat Your Family

    A zombie apocalypse is a conversation that comes up whenever a zombie film or show is on. People will always be fascinated with what would happen in their respective society's, and what they themselves would do in such a situation. Where would you go? How would you survive? Could you kill someone you love if they turned? And most importantly what happens to your morals, do they get thrown out the window? Being in a world where people who used to be your friends are now trying to eat your flesh would be tough for anyone know matter who you are. Whether you are a soldier or an accountant, it is survival of the fittest once that first zombie strikes. To survive in this post-apocalyptic world is going to take some stones though, one is going to need to be in the right state of mind to push forward. It will take a person having to kill copious amounts of zombies and even other survivors of the human race to protect their own. For the survivors who have jobs that are needed in a post apocalyptic world, such as soldiers and law enforcement have a tough decision to make. Do they continue to do their job most likely without any sort of pay, or do they go off on their own with their with their families and try and survive? Also once a person is bitten by a zombie they themselves are turned within a matter of minutes, so would you be able to kill yourself if that were to happen, and is that a moral thing to do?

    The film, World War Z starring Brad Pitt is one of the more recent zombie flicks to come out and it is unique in its own way but also just as run of the mill as the other hundred zombie films alike. From rummaging through destroyed supermarkets, jerry rigged weapons, head shots, and screaming children, World War Z is everything you would expect out of a zombie thriller and then some. During the movie many different ethical situation come up but one prominent situation is seen a few times in the movie, and that situation is suicide. Early in the film the main character Gerry gets blood from a zombie he is fighting, in his mouth and believes that he may be infected. Once he is away from the zombies he immediately runs to the edge of the building so that if he did turn he would be able to jump off the side and keep his family safe. 

He made this decision because he knew what the outcome would be if he let himself turn while his family was in his general area. At a different point in the movie suicide is presented again, this time through an American soldier who Gerry had met in South Korea. The group was refueling the plane and the soldier was bit by a zombie and he immediately knew what that implied. One of his subordinates tells him over the radio that he will "take care of it", meaning that he will kill him so that he wont turn into a "Zeike" as the soldiers called them. But the soldier denies the request and states that he will handle it himself, then proceeds to take out his pistol and shoots himself in the head, without a second thought. During this same scene, the fuel hose needed to be unattached from the plane, and if someone were to go out and unhook it they would surely be lost to the zombie onslaught occurring outside of the plane. And immediately a soldier steps up and says, "I hope Israel is worth it" then steps out of the plane and unhooks the hose and is taken by the zombies. This to me is a form of suicide, because he knew that he was going to be killed if he went out there. The film makes these acts of suicide/self sacrifice seem like such an easy decision, but in reality I am not sure if it actually would be; at least not for most people. 

       For example in a Utilitarian Society I believe the option of suicide in any of these situations would be warranted without question. According to Professor Salazar's article stating, "...the benefit of the whole requires self-sacrifice, especially for those able to substantially impact the benefits that others receive." (Salazar 1393) These suicides are in fact self-sacrifice and are acts that will benefit the whole group in return. If these suicides did not take place, or if Gerry had turned and wasn't prepared to commit suicide then, the other survivors would have suffered greatly. Gerry would have tried to kill his family once he had turned, the soldier would have become part of the zombie mob attacking the plane, and the other soldier would have been killed with the rest of the passengers if he did not unhook the fuel. One life lost to benefit the whole is the only way a Utilitarian society would work in this situation. Self-sacrifice to benefit the whole is what these suicides are done for, none of these suicides are done out of self-interest which is against the Utilitarian view.

      As for a Kantian society I believe the reaction would be very similar, in the sense that the suicide would be widely accepted. In a Kantian society one is supposed to do what is right out of duty and good will, and if you know that you are going to turn into a flesh eating zombie and kill the people around you, I believe it is completely your duty to handle that problem if possible. One must be charitable according to Professor Salazar's article, (Salazar 1392) and although one might not consider suicide as charity in a way it kind of is. It is giving life to the group that would have been lost if the suicide had not occurred. In a way it is the ultimate charity; giving the last part of you that you can possibly give, to the people you care about and in this case a few people you just met. As far as the Categorical Imperative goes, which states that behavior should be dictated by duty respects the idea of suicide for the benefit of the whole. As I stated early one has a duty to sacrifice themselves in a situation such as this if they are capable. There actions must be dictated by this duty and it is clearly shown through the actions of Gerry and the two uniformed soldiers.


References -

Salazar, Heather. “Self-Interest,” The New Catholic Encyclopedia, Series on Ethics and Morality, ed. by Robert  Fastiggi. Gale Cengage Learning, 2013