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

Bingham 68
present to witness this immediate reaction, Rick's absence has allowed tension to escalate
and the remaining semblance of legal fabric to deteriorate further toward mob rule. All
the while Thomas Richards is escaping detection by allowing the emotional passions of
the group to mask his guilt. When Rick returns he is given the consolation of finding
Tyreese alive, but he and the others in the prison are still panicked. No testimony other
than suspicion connects Dexter to the crime; so there is no promise there won't be another
killing. Though Rick has no evidence Dexter is responsible, he threatens physical force if
proof can be found (Figure 37). Rick's challenge and confrontational exterior hide an
intense emotional pain and sentiment of failure (Figure 38). He blames himself for the
death of Hershel's daughters because he assured their safety and was not present to offer
protection when they were attacked. Dexter remains suspect until Thomas attempts to
repeat his crime.
Turning again to the theories of Mark Ledbetter, moments of physical injury or
harm which come to characters can represent points of cognitive importance for readers;
body metaphor familiarizes readers with the text (12) and makes character experience
more personal and easier to internalize in relation to political experience (15). When
Thomas attempts to repeat his crime with Andrea, he targets her while she is isolated
from the rest of the group. Moreover, he physically injures her before she is able to seek
out help, slicing off her left earlobe and scarring that side of her face. As this attack
leaves Andrea scarred, it also has the same effect upon readers. In seeking out the ethic
of a text, Ledbetter notes identifying instances like these as an essential exercise because
“these characters' bodies serve as microcosm to the larger 'body' of text—the narrative we
are reading—and to the language of body metaphor which is so much a part of the human