• Journal of Popular Narrative
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.45-77
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• 2021

The aftermath of the COVID-19 virus continues. There are two potential fears behind the various preventive and quarantine measures. : the fear that "I may be infected" and the fear that "someone may infect me". This subconscious is built on the 'imagination of infection'. This paper attempted to analyze science fiction(SF) narratives and zombie narratives that influenced our imagination of infection. And this paper attempts to examine how SF novels and movies understand and express "infection", and how zombie narratives reveal "infection" and its horror. Mary Shelley's novel "The Last Man" revealed the paradox that the fear of an infectious disease gave humanity an opportunity for reflection. The films and showed that fear and aversion to infectious diseases can lead to riots and conflict. Zombie narrative is a genre that most dramatically expresses the horror of infection. Director Yeon Sangho's zombie trilogy, including , reveals that people around you can turn into the most dangerous source of infection. Through SF and zombie narratives, we can realize that humanity must have a humble sense of solidarity, ethics, and empathy in the face of infectious diseases. Through this narrative texts, we can realize the importance of the imagination of infection. Imagination of infection is the basis for understanding the causes and consequences of the spread of infection, the process and future prospects.