Walking Corpses & Conscious Plants: Possibilist Ecologies in ...

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vulnerability” (Cavarero 30). Totally dependent upon their caregivers, the children have
neither the stature nor strength to contend with lethal threats like those posed by the
creatures who would stop at nothing to kill and consume them. Violating the sanctity of
innocence by compromising the well-being of a child is one of the most heinous and
unforgivable acts one can commit. Accordingly, to understand the impact the enactment
of violence has upon a community as well as the individual(s) directly subjected to it, one
must compare its actual effects to the expectations held by those affected before they
have undergone that trauma. To illustrate the severity of consequences which would be
caused by this type of inescapable violence, the creators of The Walking Dead invert and
shatter the social roles and responsibilities normally associated with juvenile characters—
namely, by withdrawing their ability to remain sheltered from death.
Among the companions, the make-shift community has become considerably
comfortable. Though they are without the luxuries of running water or electricity, they
are close enough to the city for one of their members, Glenn, to make routine supply runs
for food and amenities like detergent. This setting lulls many into a false sense of
security, especially once Rick and Glenn obtain guns and begin giving shooting lessons.
Though Rick advocates for relocation, Shane refuses and resists considering the
possibility (Figure 8 & 9). Unbeknownst to Rick, when he was left behind at the hospital
in Kentucky, Shane and Lori slept together. Shane's desire to maintain a sense of
authority and avoid being replaced by Rick has cataclysmic effects upon the group. The
interruption to Shane's fantasy for supplanting Rick as his wife's lover and son's father
figure forces the other survivors into peril. One night the camp is attacked and two
members perish in the fray; one of the victims is a college aged young woman named