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| Rick and the other survivors of The Walking Dead |
The Walking Dead and Hobbes
After watching the Lions and Tigers
both win crucial games last Sunday, I eagerly waited for the season premiere of
one of my favorite television shows, The Walking Dead. The Walking Dead is a television show on AMC about a group of
people in a zombie apocalyptic world that are fighting for survival. The main character of the show is Deputy Rick
Grimes and he is the unquestioned leader of the group. Rick and the other survivors are constantly
seeking resources and shelter in order to survive. While watching The Walking Dead, a light bulb flashed in my head and I discovered
that this television show is extremely similar to Hobbes’ beliefs on political
structure.
Hobbes, for people that do not
know, was a philosopher from England who was best known for his work on
political structure. In 1651, the
philosopher wrote Leviathan,
which is considered his most influential work.
In Leviathan, Hobbes explains through
social contract theory how to establish society and government. Hobbes strongly supported absolutism; the
belief that a single person should run a society and government.
But what is the association between
The Walking Dead and Hobbes? The
Walking Dead is a good example of how Hobbes believed societies and
governments should be created.
The plot of The Walking Dead is a perfect example of Hobbes’ state of nature. Hobbes state of nature is when there is no form
of government and when people are fearful of dying violently (Hobbes). In the first season of The Walking Dead, Rick awakes from a coma to discovery his world is
completely different. His planet is
infested with zombies, or what the show refers to as “walkers”. Rick is in Hobbes’ state of nature because
there is no societal structure and he is in constant fear of being infected or
killed by “walkers”. As a result, Rick
goes searching for his family and survivors for protection.
In the second season Rick is still
in Hobbes’ state of nature, but he has found his family and other
survivors. Rick, his family, and the
other survivors decided to form a group and travel together. While struggling to determine how the group
should be run, two potential leaders emerge, Rick and Shane. Rick and Shane throughout the second season
argue with one another about what is best for the group. The conflict between the two leaders creates
tension within the group and fractions form.
Hobbes would believe that these fractions would lead to fighting within
the group and eventually a civil war. Hobbes
felt that any form of concrete government was better than the possibility of a
civil war. Hobbes rationalized that the
only prevention to a civil war was an absolute government and a leader.
In the case of The Walking Dead, the absolute leader has become Rick because at
the end of the second season Rick is forced to kill Shane. Since Shane’s death, there is no longer a
struggle for power and Rick has been making all executive decisions. Hobbes would be pleased with the current
structure of the survivors because their situation is a replica of an absolute
government.
Hobbes would also be thrilled with the group
because they are following Hobbes’ laws of nature. Hobbes believed that people should seek
peace, maintain peace, and make covenants (Hobbes). Since Rick has gained control of the group
there has been no infighting amongst group members and the group has rallied
around Rick’s leadership. If the group
ever feels endangered they seek guidance and protection from Rick to resolve
the situation.
In the first episode of the third
season, things are looking up for the group.
Rick and the survivors have found a new fortress for protection, a prison. They first, however, must clean the prison of
its remaining inmate “walkers”.
Do you agree with Hobbes that an
absolute government is the best way to structure a society? Will the group survive under the rule of
Rick?
Above is a preview of the third season of The Walking
Dead if your are interested in watching.
Above is a preview of the third season of The Walking
Dead if your are interested in watching.
Great post about The Walking Dead Mark! I wish I had thought to blog about this show sooner. The environment that the band of survivors in the award winning AMC series is horrifically different than our society. They live within a cruel state of nature that makes the threat of death extremely high. Hobbes said that people fear for their life most in a state of nature.
ReplyDeleteSeason 3 is drastically different than the seasons before it, because Rick has emerged as the clear leader of the group. Hobbes preferred that an absolute ruler take charge of the society to prevent civil war within a group. Season 2 was filled with dangerous indecision and sometimes action by the group as a whole that was a direct result of the power struggle between Rick Grimes and Shane Walsh. However, thus far into season 3, it seems as though the group is safer with Rick calling the shots alone. Maybe Hobbes state of nature should be called something else entirely. I think that his interpretations on how people will act with one another are forcibly pessimistic. They fit better when people are in danger, like in the apocalyptic world that these characters live in or in a war zone.
The trailer for this season of the show has foreshadowed the existence of what is arguably the first form of government portrayed in the series. One among Rick's group was separated from them when a herd of walkers took over the farm. Her name is Andrea, and although she was saved by a mysterious new character, they both find themselves kidnapped to a place called Woodbury. This town is run by a monarch, listed on the website only under the unspecific moniker The Governor. I believe this is more evidence that this television series is a breeding ground for monarchial societies.
The season's third episode will be Sunday at 9pm. We will meet the governor for the first time. What kind of sick things is that guy up to, and what legitimates his rule?
The Walking Dead is one of the best shows on T.V. right now. However, I choose not to watch it because I've read the graphic novels prior to the show gaining popularity. The graphic novels have a far different plot line than the show, which provides for some interesting dynamics.
ReplyDeleteFirst and foremost, Shane is killed in the very first issue. You'd think this would pretty much dissolve any need for further leadership struggles, but this is not true at all. As long as there are people together, there will be dissent. It eventually gets so bad that Rick and the others decide to have a group of them vote on decisions instead, sort of modeling what a democracy would look like. Except it was only the dominant men in the group who would vote... go figure.
One of the main reasons I stopped watching the show was because I felt like it involved too much conflict between the humans themselves. It just started to play out more and more like a boring drama. The graphic novels, on the other hand, kept the action moving, focused on the realistic aspects of zombie survival (whatever those are), and would always have philosophical commentary on the actions of characters. For instance, "The Governor" that was mentioned in the previous poster is not exactly a great character. Without giving any spoilers, let's just say that he goes to extreme lengths to ensure the survival and well being of his community. The graphic novels make you ask yourself this question: in a world where everything is dead, what makes us truly human? You'll see that in this state of war, one by one the humans will begin to lose their humanness, eventually ending up no better than the zombies they fight.
This is an interesting comparison of Hobbe’s state of nature and life during a zombie apocalypse. The first season and the first part of the second season play out almost exactly as Hobbes describes the state of nature. Everyone acts in his or her self-interest. However, not everyone is equal, a key component in Hobbe’s state of nature. Certain characters have knowledge such as survival skills and weapon training that give them an advantage. Regardless, due to fear of violent death the characters begin to come together to form and group and a covenant.
ReplyDeleteYou also do a great job of relating Hobbe’s theory of how government should be formed to structure of the survival group in the walking dead. Deputy Rick acts as the groups group’s supreme leader and enforces the rules the rules of the group. However, there is some fault in this comparison, as members of the group never officially “authorize” Rick as their leader.
In the most recent episode, which aired on 11-4-2012, Carl was forced to shoot his mother Lori to protect the rest of the survivors. I think that this makes Carl a perfect example of someone who dirtied his hands. Lori had been pregnant. The group had been seeking shelter in a prison, but zombies were able to break into the compound and chaos spread. Lori, Maggie, and Carl (Lori’s son of about 12) find themselves alone, running through hallways and forced to seek shelter from walkers in some kind of boiler room. Then the baby started coming and Lori found out she was not dilated enough to give birth safely. She insists that Maggie give her an impromptu C-section. When Carl realized that his mother was dead or close to it, he had reconciled with the fact that she would turn into a zombie. Carl summoned his strength and shot her to ensure that she would not haunt the survivors. When the survivors were able to regroup at the end of the episode, Rick breaks down when he sees his son and Maggie bearing the baby in her arms emerge, without his wife. Carl did what he had to do, and definitely dirtied his hands in the process. Dirty hands are a case of moral conflict in which an actor makes a decision that is morally wrong while at the same time beneficial for the actor’s group.
ReplyDelete