Zombie is a phrase derived from Vodou language that refers to individuals who seem to have died and are buried as a result.
The appearance of death, on the other hand, was produced by a sorcerer who concocts sophisticated poisons from a variety of botanical, mineral, and animal sources.
The sorcerer and whomever hired him (in Haiti, male practitioners of this kind of magic are more common than female practitioners, though this may not be the case elsewhere) are fully aware that the victim is not really dead.
- The "corpse" is dug out and an antidote is given after the coast is clear.
- However, the original poisoning—as well as the stress of burial—usually results in brain damage.
- That individual will never be the same; they have been changed into a zombi, which is the proper Kreyol spelling and may be single or plural.
- Zombies are always compelled to work as agricultural slaves in Haiti.
- The idea of the zombi existed in both Africa and Haiti, but the terms aren't often used interchangeably.
- The idea may have existed abroad as well, based on funeral rituals that guarantee that the corpse is really dead (graveside vigils, stakes through the heart, etc.).
From 1915 until 1934, American troops controlled Haiti.
- The independence of Haiti, a black country, elicited significant responses from white Americans at a time of severe racial segregation and prejudice in the United States.
- Fear and rejection coexisted with curiosity, and distorted elements of Haitian culture were absorbed into American popular culture, particularly horror films.
“Zombies” and “Voodoo-doctors” became prominent tropes in the horror genre, serving as terrifying things with little resemblance to the original idea.
- This is referred to by the Hollywood spelling "zombie." Wade Davis, a Harvard ethnobotanist, went to Haiti to study zombies in the hopes of improving anesthetic techniques.
- In his book The Serpent and the Rainbow, he chronicles his experiences and discoveries, including a zombification recipe (Simon & Schuster, 1985).
- The 1988 film adaption is a horror picture that does not serve as a replacement for the novel.
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