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Nocturnal Zombie Monsters A plague has spread and the entire human population has turned into monsters. There is nowhere to hide or run for you are the last human creature and hope for civilization. In the movie I Am Legend, the protagonist Robert Neville is the only survivor in the evacuated city of New York, where humans have turned into monsters that possess the city at night. The movie ends with Robert Neville saving the world by finding a cure to the disease providing the audience with the restoration of hope in civilization. The backbone behind I Am Legend is the tragic event of 9/11. This incident resulted in the spread of infectiousness air that lead to many diseases and deaths. However, in the film the concept of the toxic air is borrowed as an epidemic disease has spread that has infected civilization and results in humans mutating into nocturnal zombie monsters. Thus, after 9/11, the American nation has become paranoid of another attack from occurring. The movie reveals the next level of paranoia involving the possibility of a zombie apocalypse. Furthermore, post 9/11 has influenced the diseases incorporated in the movie. The nations reactions and paranoia as a result of 9/11. Overall, the significance of nocturnal zombies monsters in this film.

Meza 2 The tragedy of 9/11 resulted in multiple deaths, traumatization of the nation, but most importantly the diseases that spread from the amount of toxins that were released in the air when the World Trade Center (Twin Towers) collapsed. For example, a toxic dust spread in a form of a cloud that consumed metals, lead, and other chemicals from the building and later resulted in various diseases such as respiratory problems and even cancer. According to the article More than 1,100 have cancer after 9/11 by CNN Staff, specialists and federal health authorities are to still to this present day adding numbers to the deaths caused by the aftermath of toxic air in New York City due to 9/11. Moreover, the movie was filmed in 2007 after 9/11; additionally, the contaminated air links the film to the concept behind I Am Legend because it also takes place in Manhattan, New York where a disease has spread to the city, and people are evacuating the city before the epidemic spreads. On September 11, 2001, the New York people were unaware of what was occurring as they saw all mountains of smoke in the air hence everyone ran for their life leaving their city and home behind in the dust. The fictional movie I Am Legend has no correlation where it states that this is an extended version of 9/11, but the connection can still be made given the fact that many indications of the issues were the similar like the type of disease that spread and location. A long-term effect due to 9/11 was the scar that it left in our nations name. The American nation, twelve years later still have numerous individuals who are afraid of taking a

Meza 3 plane. This reveals that Americans are still very cautious of another attack occurring henceforth, security around the nation has been widely increased. New laws were passed for example, congress passed the USA Patriot Act (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act) which was passed a month after 9/11 to prevent terrorist attacks from happening and so they can be prevented and the correct measures are made. Security at all airports nationwide were dramatically increased and strictly enforced and many precautions were taken more serious. Additionally, the privacy of many people are now being corrupted as the government can now see what everyone is doing, and even in the matters of what, where, and how just to prevent such thing to occur again in the county. The United States has took immense steps of preparing to protect and defend the American people by creating new laws to prevent future incidents, and creating more nuclear bombs and missiles. Furthermore, the movie Eagle Eye came out where it shows how the government has eyes everywhere and shows how nothing can be hid. Nevertheless, the United States was so paranoid of another attack that they took extreme actions and changed everything to prevent another attack that can tear the county again. This movie shows possibly the only thing that the government cannot control for that is a zombie invasion. In the movie, the city of New York was only vacated during the day while the sun was out however, at the night the monsters would come out and take over the city. These monster were not just any ordinary monsters, they were nocturnal zombie monsters that would burn in the sun, which was their only weakness. The significance of the zombies

Meza 4 being nocturnal allowed them to be their strongest at their specific time of day. Also, It adds the suspense of being able to be free for a couple of hours, but later on be hunted by the monster zombies. However, humans are their weakest at night since we see clear in the night more than the day so it makes the game of hiding much harder for the human beings. Furthermore, these monsters skin were so pale that it even appeared to look gray, and also at the same time you can see their veins and dramatically enlarged muscles. That same skin appeared infected because they were hairless and their entire bodies had internal bruises as if they were sick or had some type of cancer. They had ridiculous strength as they could jump tremendously far, speed faster than cheetahs, and hunted like psycho gorillas. The disease was unlike anything a person has even seen, but only imaged from the reading of old text about monsters and especially the stories of zombies. In the film, the infected humans turn into zombies who are relatively the terrorists who are also attempting cause harm to the human race. After 9/11, the American people have considered any type of person who is an outsider to be a potential terrorist. Zombies are also different and they would be classified as an extreme level of terrorist. In Excerpts from World War Z, there was a similar zombie outbreak in China. The boy began to twist in my direction, his arm ripped completely free. Flesh and muscle tore from one another until there was nothing except the stump (Brooks 73). This boy was infected by a bite in Ancient City of Old Dachang and the disease began to spread throughout China. In both World War Z and I Am Legend, the humans began to turn into zombies which were something unexpected to ever occur in society. In both settings, zombies were going to take over the world and there was nothing anyone can prevent it but run and hide. Robert was going through the same trouble that the medical doctor Kwang Jing-shu in World War Z was going through as he witnessed the attack of a zombie

Meza 5 plague and could no do much but look for help but no one was prepared for such a thing. Only a few selected individuals were privileged to escape the infected the city in both the film and story. Not everyone could be saved thus this reminds me of Paul Redekers theory in the story where he only wanted to save certain people and use the rest as bait, which is what occurred in I Am Legend. Those who were left behind were to be herded into special isolated zones. They were to be human bait, distracting the undead following the retreating army to their safe zone (Brooks 73). In the movie, Robert uses himself as bait and gives up his life to save the world. A monster can be a man, women, terrorist, zombie, or just about anyone. In Parasites and Perverts, Judith Halberstam states The monster, such a narrative suggests, will find you in the intimacy of your own home; indeed, it will make your home (or you its home) and alter forever the comfort of domestic privacy (Halberstam 133). This explains that a monster can be anyone or anything, and how monsters will invade you and take everything. Furthermore, director Francis Lawrence of I Am Legend chose nocturnal zombies to be the monsters in his film because it demonstrates that we are our own monsters. A zombie is not born a zombie but rather transforms from a human who gets infected with a disease and become a zombie. This proves what the world should really be frightened of is not the fictional monsters like vampires and werewolves, but zombies because one day a zombie might come true because todays technology and the effects that drugs have on people. Drugs now of day are making people act totally opposite from normal human showing zombie like features. Zombies portray us and are the ultimate monsters because they are humans after all. Overall, I Am Legend is based on the horrid incident of 9/11 and the long-term effects of diseases that were incorporated and the similarity of zombies in World War Z and the film. Also, the security changes and laws that were made because of how the United States is paranoid of a

Meza 6 future terrorist attack. Nevertheless, humans were chosen to be the monsters proving that we are our own monsters. The film shows that in society monsters can take any form but I Am Legend reinsures us that there will always be hope in civilization no matter what situation we are in.

Work Cited

Blake, Brandy B., Cooper, Andrew L., eds. Judith Halberstam: Parasites and Perverts: introduction to Gothic Monstrosity. Texas: Fountainhead Press, 2012. Print. Blake, Brandy B., Cooper, Andrew L., eds. Max Brooks: Excerpts from World War Z. Texas: Fountainhead Press, 2012. Print. "911 First Responders Plagued by Health Problems From Toxic Dust and Debris." Abc. http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Wellness/911-responders-plagued-cancer-asthmaptsd/story?id=14427512, n.d. Web. 1 Sept. 2011.

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More than 1000 have cancer after 9/11 Cnn. http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/11/health/911cancer-treatment/, n.d. Web. 11 Sept. 2013.