Warm Bodies Memories and the Past

If you woke up tomorrow with no memories, would you even know who you were? Memories and identity are closely related—so related, in fact that one of the main reasons for R's zombie identity crisis is that he has no memories of the past. It's not as bad as being a zombie version of Memento, but it's close. Warm Bodies turns classic zombie mythology on its head by making this loss of memory a zombie's main motivation for braaaaaiiinns. They're not eating brains because they're hungry; they're eating brains because it gives them a jolt of memory. And to a zombie, memories are life.

Questions About Memories and the Past

1. R starts feeling alive when he starts having memories and dreams, yet almost all of the memories and dreams he has are Perry's. Is R living his own life or someone else's?
2. Why does Perry choose the memories he shows to R?
3. Both Julie and the Boneys are big advocates of taking photos to preserve memories. What's the difference between the way the Living use photos and the way the Dead do?

Chew on This

Whereas the Living use drugs to forget, zombies use brains as drugs to remember. Both are addictive for the exact opposite reasons.

Without memories, R and the rest of the Dead have no past. But they show that it's never too late to start making memories.