Zombies in Popular Media

Mysterious sorcerers enslave the unwary using dark forces. Rotting corpses rise from their graves and hunt down the living, ravenous for warm flesh. The survivors run in terror, or huddle together for safety, slowly counting the days until the mob breaks down the barriers.

Why do zombies fascinate us? What cultural forces shape the way we see and understand these creatures? Why do they want brains so much? Like infestation-apocalypse survivors looking for ammo, we'll seek these answers with vigor and determination.

About the course

Zombies in Popular Media is an intense, three-week course exploring the history, cultural significance, and horrifying circumstances of zombies as they appear in cinema, comics, literature, and elsewhere. The class meets daily from 9:30 to 11:50, with a regular screening immediately following class. Students complete reading and reflection assignments nightly and complete two projects as part of the course. The coursework is roughly equivalent to a semester's worth of reading and writing, crammed into a crucible of three weeks in January. This course fullfills the Humanities Literature requirement, and is worth 3 credits.

To get a sense of the scope and materials the course will use, check out last year's syllabus.

A word of caution

This course is intense and difficult. It's boatloads of fun, but it's important that you understand the vigor with which we'll tackle these issues. Please look at the syllabus from last year and read the student comments to get an idea of what the course will be like. And then, if you're ready for the challenge, register as soon as you can.

Zombies in Popular Media is taught by me, Brendan Riley, a faculty member in the English department. If you have any questions, please email me: briley@colum.edu.

Shameless marketing: quotes from students who took the class in 2008 and 2009.

"Listen up kids, this is a class about Zombies. If that doesn't sink its teeth into the "radical" complex of your cranium, I don't know what will. But if you want more of a reason to attend this class (other than being an emotionless corpse yourself) you got it. It's also a history class, a writing class, and I would even consider it a psychology class.... The point is, if you're hungry to expand your mind for something different--I mean truly different--this study is the thanksgiving mother-load. Because zombies aren't just rotting monsters: they're a mirror, a punishment, a parody, and a metaphor."

"It was by far the best non-photo class I have taken at Columbia so far!"

"For those of you looking for a simple blow-off course, shy away!  For those of you who are fans of genre films or zombies in general, this is definitely for you.  Dr. Riley's course regarding the philosophical implications involved with the undead simply blew my mind in the best possible way."

"If you're looking for something to do in January to stay warm (and love zombies!) this choice is a no-brainer!"

"The readings were tough, but we thorougly discussed everything so I got a lot out of them."

"This class was fantastic. As an avid zombie lover, I was thrilled to discuss psychology,
theory, film history, and more regarding one of my favorite topics. I looked forward to every
single class. Brendan is such a great teacher, incredibly intelligent and professional. I feel
prviledged to have taken this course with him."

"This class is the shit."

"This class was fantastic. I've already highly recommended it and wish I could take it again!"

"Having on-hand knowledge of the zombie film cannon has been useful in the most unsuspecting of conversations. Easily the most interesting class I took at Columbia, Zombies in Popular Media not only taught me about zombie films, but increased my capacity for critical analysis. This class was both fun and helpful."

You can also read a more in-depth discussion of the course on Columbia's LOOP website.