Kurt Vonnegut and Zombies

by Jorell Vuthivicha-Mor

Kurt Vonnegut was a satirical novelist known for works like Cat’s Cradle, Slaughterhouse-Five, and Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, and he often explored themes of human absurdity, free will, and societal collapse. He suggests that humanity's blind attachment to routine and authority makes people zombie-like. His stories portray people trapped in meaningless cycles. Vonnegut creates this idea through dark humor and irony. He often depicts characters who mindlessly follow orders or conform to oppressive systems, such as the overcrowded, complacent family living indefinitely through chemical life extension in Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow (Vonnegut, 1953). His purpose is to critique the absurdity of modern life and challenge readers to recognize their own programmed behaviors in order to become more self-aware and resist dehumanization. Vonnegut’s intended audience consists of skeptics, intellectuals, and those who are not easily deceived by societal promises of progress. With these readers, he established a relationship through wit and irony, making his stories both engaging and unsettling. If Vonnegut had written about zombies, he likely would have portrayed them as a tragic reflection of humanity.

Vonnegut would likely view a zombie outbreak as a metaphor for the mindless conformity and dehumanization he often criticized in his novels. He believed that people, much like zombies, follow routines without questioning their purpose, making them easy to manipulate. In Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, the Schwartz family continues to exist in unbearable, cramped conditions simply because society promises indefinite life, even though their quality of life has collapsed (Vonnegut, 1953). This acceptance of misery mirrors the passive existence of zombies, where the infected lose their individuality and become part of an unthinking mass. Peter Reed argues that Vonnegut’s work often shows “human beings reduced to machines by the systems they create” (Reed, 1972, p. 45). This mechanical existence would make the transformation into zombies almost symbolic of what has already happened to society. Just as his characters blindly submit to the promises of science and government, zombies symbolize people who have lost their ability to think critically. Vonnegut’s judgment of modern society suggests that the real horror is not the undead, but instead, it is the willingness of people to give up control over their own lives.

Another way Vonnegut would critique a zombie epidemic is by focusing on how society handles crises through authority and empty ritual rather than taking action. In Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, regulations and social structures have collapsed under the weight of overpopulation, yet people continue to act as if life is normal. Gramps, the oppressive head of the family, maintains power by controlling his descendants’ inheritances, and he traps them in a hopeless cycle (Vonnegut, 1953). Even though their living conditions are terrible, the family accepts the situation because it is the established system. Reed notes that Vonnegut’s characters are often “paralyzed by social scripts” that prevent them from imagining better alternatives (Reed, 1972, p. 67). This hollow obedience to outdated structures mirrors how, in a zombie outbreak, governments and institutions might cling to meaningless traditions instead of adapting to survive. Vonnegut would likely show how society’s focus on maintaining appearances leads to greater disaster. In his view, people are so trained to obey authority and follow social scripts that they become complicit in their own destruction. The mindless continuation of broken systems would be just as terrifying as the zombie virus itself.

Vonnegut’s use of irony also suggests he would portray zombies as a symbol of consumerism and material greed. In Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, every character dreams of inheriting Gramps’ private bedroom and bathroom, even as their living conditions become more unbearable (Vonnegut, 1953). The family’s obsession with material gain blinds them to their own misery and strips away their humanity. Jerome Klinkowitz notes that Vonnegut “forces readers to confront the absurdity of modern existence by laughing at its horrors” (Klinkowitz, 2004, p. 22). Through ironic exaggeration, Vonnegut shows that materialism has replaced meaningful human connections. If applied to a zombie epidemic, Vonnegut would likely show humans mindlessly hoarding resources, fighting over meaningless possessions, and continuing to consume even after society’s collapse. Zombies would not just hunger for brains. They would be an exaggerated version of human greed, stripped of higher thought or purpose. Boluk and Lenz, authors of Generation Zombie, argue that zombies often represent “the erosion of individuality and autonomy in a mass-mediated society” (Boluk & Lenz, 2011, p. 5). Vonnegut’s zombies would therefore be a commentary on a world where consumerism and conformity have already eaten away at human spirit.

Vonnegut’s dark humor would emphasize the absurdity of how people normalize tragedy. In Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, the extreme conditions of life such as overpopulation, scarcity, and misery are treated with a shrug and a laugh. The characters joke about their own suffering (Vonnegut, 1953). This darkly comedic approach mirrors Klinkowitz’s point that Vonnegut does not offer solutions but instead presents the gloominess of life in a way that forces readers to recognize their involvement (Klinkowitz, 2004, p. 41). Similarly, in the face of a zombie outbreak, Vonnegut would likely highlight the bizarre ways humans adjust to horror, creating routines and rituals around the undead until even mass death becomes ordinary. He might imagine a world where zombies are simply part of daily life. They may just be avoided like bad weather or pot holes in the road. This casual acceptance of the unacceptable reflects a core theme in Vonnegut’s work. His core theme is humanity's incredible ability to adapt not by fixing problems but lowering expectations instead. The true absurdity lies not in the monsters, but it actually lies in how people manage to live alongside them without ever questioning why the world has become so broken.

Vonnegut’s ultimate message would be that hope lies not in fighting the zombies, but in reclaiming individuality and compassion. In Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, there are hints that the characters’ suffering is not inevitable but is the result of choices. They choose selfishness, blind faith in science, and ignore reality (Vonnegut, 1953). If applied to a zombie epidemic, Vonnegut would likely suggest that survival depends not on brute strength but on resisting the herd mentality. Stephanie Boluk and Wylie Lenz emphasize that zombies are often a warning about “the dangers of losing individuality to mass systems of control” (Boluk & Lenz, 2011, p. 7). In Vonnegut’s universe, true survival would mean rejecting mass behavior and instead acting with empathy, creativity, and independent thought. His work repeatedly emphasizes that even in the most absurd and hopeless conditions, human dignity can survive if people refuse to become machines.

Kurt Vonnegut’s absurdist style would transform a zombie outbreak into a biting satire of modern society’s flaws. Through dark humor, irony, and powerful metaphors, he would expose how conformity, bureaucracy, greed, and emotional numbness are far more horrifying than any virus. His portrayal would challenge readers not to fear the monsters outside but to fear their own self esteem and smugness. Just as he critiqued the mindless acceptance of misery in Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, Vonnegut would use the image of zombies to hold up an unsettling mirror to the modern world. Vonnegut’s dark vision would leave readers questioning whether the real epidemic is not the undead, but humanity’s slow surrender to absurdity.

References

Boluk, Stephanie, and Wylie Lenz. Generation Zombie: Essays on the Living Dead in Modern 

Culture. McFarland, 2011.

Klinkowitz, Jerome. The Vonnegut Effect. University of South Carolina Press, 2004.

Reed, Peter J. Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. Twayne Publishers, 1972.Vonnegut, Kurt. "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow." Galaxy Science Fiction, 1953.