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Kyle Bishop points out that due to the result of the zombie invasion, the surviving humans lose their identity as what Marx labeled as "species being" and are reduced to the level of "life activity". (1) Species being is the theory that humans are capable of shaping their own nature while life activity is the idea that man is not unique from his essential being on earth. Bishop further provides insight that any labor they do use is for pure survival such as establishing barriers for safety, thieving the stores for food and clothing, and looking for recreation to pass time. Without labor, the characters are not able to become self-aware of their situation and when they lose this productive labor, the unaware individuals living in Romero's mall eventually fail to see what makes them essentially ' 'human,'' and they relapse to a more primitive, animal state. (1).
Romero expresses his view that society itself will inevitably fail because humans can only consume. When granted the opportunity to transcend the framework of a "late-capitalist society" in a situation that provides them with all their needs, the surviving humans in Dawn of the Dead only attempt to recreate the irretrievable structures of society and become fatally overwhelmed by the apparent desire to own rather than produce. (1) The characters successfully convert the mall into a fortress, a church, and a home but they provide no intrinsic value. These constructions fail to create a true society for these three survivors to provide themselves with a new identity and life. Peter is stuck in the past, missing Roger, spending his precious, limited time at his friend's grave and acting as though he has no purpose in life to live for. Stephen seems to want to live in the present. He, more than Stephen and Fran, visions the mall as a utopian paradise and has no desire to change anything.