In many zombie apocalypse movies, the outbreak usually begins with an infection. They describe it as a fast-acting pathogen or parasite that can render a human undead within minutes. This fear has been, at times, replayed over and over throughout the medical community. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has documented many outbreaks of AIDS, Ebola, and West Nile Virus throughout regions of the United States, often comparing them to potential zombie outbreaks. However, none of these diseases come close to the devastation that the Black Death caused.

The Black Death, also known as the Bubonic Plague, has been considered one of the most deadliest outbreaks in human history. The plague is caused by Yersinia pestis, a bacteria that spread from China to the Middle East and Europe, managing to decimate over half of Europe’s population. Symptoms of the Black Death include various buboes on many parts of the body, including the armpit and the groin. When these buboes appear, other symptoms such as acute fever and vomiting up blood follow. Many men such as Boccaccio would document these symptoms, knowing full well that death was inevitable for the individual.  

Because of the horrific death toll, many people believed that the Black Death was a punishment from God. Subsequently, they blamed the Jews, pilgrims, and lepers, resulting in many more unnecessary tragedies. For example, the massacre of the Jewish communities in Strasbourg caused the death of approximately 2000 Jews. Just a few months later, Cologne and Mainz suffered the same fate.  

Of course, though this particular period in time was tragic, there were still aspects of the Black Death that impacted European culture, regardless of the time. For example, the Danse Macabre, called the Dance of Death, is a genre that describes that no matter how old you are, or how wealthy, death will come for everyone. The rather popular children’s song, Ring a Ring o’ Roses, describes the practice of burning bodies that have been infected by the plague. The plague doctor costume has been seen in various carnivals and gothic masquerades. When an outbreak of Bubonic Plague occurred in Colorado, many people likened it back to the plague that occurred in Europe. Fortunately, it wasn't as massive, but the scare was enough to remind many of what had happened centuries before. 

The Black Death has continued to be regarded as one of the world’s worst pandemics. By the time the Black Death had passed, millions of people had died, and introduced drastic changes to Europe’s society. This included a renewal in religious fervor, economic relief, and political upheaval. The Black Death has continued to haunt humanity, so much so that many people have documented the reactions and living conditions during that time, such as the Chronicle of Florence and Doomsday Book by Connie Willis. The Black Death will be remembered as a morose time filled with death, decay, and paranoia, a time period that, if we aren’t very careful, might be repeated again.