Being a Leader in the Zombie Apocalypse

Being a Leader in the Zombie Apocalypse

By Jon-Paul Scordio

In the realm of Zombie-lore there seems to be two main options: Either take Jesse Eisenberg’s choice from Zombieland to not trust anyone because your hot neighbor tried to eat you, or more typically join a group of people because there are strength in numbers. We clearly see a group dynamic in Courtney Summers’ novel, This is Not a Test, as our narrator is barricaded up in her high school with five other teenagers. Having the only parents missing, and believed dead, by the time the teenagers arrived at CHS, no clear leadership has been established. We see Cary chastised by Trace in the beginning for trying to fill that position, but by the end of the first section (up to page 139), we see a clear lack of leadership within our group of survivors. As a member of my communities ruling council, I find there are a wide range of characteristics that go into a leader to keep everyone organized and level-headed in a disorganized and flesh-eating world. The 6 members of the CHS community all exemplify aspects of a potential leader, but lack in certain areas that prevent them from being a leader thus far.

Cary Chen

We can view Cary as the leader initially because he speaks up first and has no problem with assuming control. This can be seen early on, especially when Trace argues with him because Cary spoke up first when everyone was asked to do next on page 31. Cary helps organize the group as well, setting up rules for breakfast, water usage, daily checks of barricades and keeping hope for survival amongst the group. However, we first see signs of a weak leader once in the library exploring the “thud” noise on page 52 because Cary starts to become short with Grace and Trace, showing that he isn’t the most levelheaded. This escalates even further on page 88 when Cary and Trace get into a fight. Cary’s weakness in being able to control his emotions starts to have a downward spiral in his ability to lead everyone. It all comes full circle when they all get drunk and Cary spills about the guilt on his heart, as well as his true intentions for when Trace and Grace parents died.

Rhys Moreno

In the beginning of the novel, Rhys is portrayed as Cary’s wingman, or sidekick. Trace points this out to everyone multiple times throughout the first half. He is portrayed as such because he does the same exact things as Cary, yet never takes initiative, kind of like he is the muscle, and Cary is the brains. However, Rhys seems to be the most levelheaded amongst the whole bunch since he is consistently the only one to diffuse the situation between the Casper twins and Cary. On top of that, Rhys thinks about the group as a whole, and about himself the least. Whether it is taking the initiative to go find Sloane because she’s missing, or offering to wear the emergency backpacks because no one else wants to for fear they will be easier to grab onto by zombies. Cary offers to carry the backpack as well, yet his failure to step up to go outside and check on the guy showed his true colors, where as Rhys stepped up to do that as well. Rhys seems to be good leader material, but seems to also enjoy not having that title.

Trace Casper

Right from the start, there isn’t much about Trace that makes him in any way, shape or form a good leader. He is always first to start an argument, is hardly ever a team player, and even portrayed as a baby with his sister. Not to mention, he is extremely selfish, unless it comes to Grace (but they are kind of the same person), and willing to risk anyone else’s life over his own. Only when he is drunk does he show some compassion to Harrison, comforting him about his life since Cary made him feel worthless. So overall, he seems like a terrible leader, except one thing; Trace has no aversion to ever speak his mind, and in a Zombie apocalypse, that attribute can be an important one for your leader to have.

Grace Casper

When we first meet Grace, she is portrayed as a motherly character, tending to Trace whenever needed, trying to get him to eat, calming him down when upset and letting him think that their parents are still alive in order to instill some hope. However, mother Grace seems to be too emotional, and influenced by her brother’s actions. Also, despite her brother making terrible rash decisions, she sides along instead of having her own voice as the more levelheaded sibling. Grace could be a good leader, in fact she was student body president, but she solidified her role as a mother, caring only for herself and her brother.

Sloane Price

Our narrator let us know right off the bat that she was suicidal, which is never a good trait for any leader. She often wanders by herself, and likes the idea of putting herself at risk of death. She doesn’t like to voice her opinions or engage in any conflict for that matter. Yet one good aspect about Sloane is that she is willing to put the needs of the group before herself. Yes, she may have led Rhys to almost-death allowing him to come out with her even though she never planned on going back in, but when Rhys froze up, she went back to save him. Also, as we see her character grow, we also see her suicidal side diminish a bit. Making it ironic that in a world of so much death, she is starting to see reason for life.

Harrison

As Cary puts it in the end, Harrison is the most useless, and the most expendable of the six. He cries, all the time, and never does anything but worry. Straight up, the worst leader. One thing that he does bring to the table though, is his ability to wonder and question every aspect of every situation. A close-minded leader can influence a group negatively, and have the innocence and ability to analyze something further can save you sometimes.