Some historians believe the Battle of Gettysburg to be the turning point in the American Civil War, and it is during this important battle that Jane reports the beginning of the shambler uprising. Because the dead rose after the battle, the Civil War was thrown off course. This makes the shamblers the most mysterious, complex, and unusual symbol in the novel, and Ireland uses the undead to represent the seeds of prejudice, hatred, and discord that has torn the country apart.

In Dread Nation, the word for the undead, “shambler,” serves a dual purpose. To “shamble” means to move awkwardly or clumsily, so the name refers to the way the undead move once they reanimate. Further, when something is “in shambles,” it is understood to be disorderly, disastrous, or uncared for. Similarly, the shamblers represent the “shambles” that the United States has found itself in following the onset of the Civil War in which a nation is being ripped apart by its own people bent on destroying one another. Jane hints at this idea when she states that “no one expected those dead boys to bite their buddies and turn them as well” (30). To turn against one’s comrades during battle is to create chaos, and any semblance of structure dissolved in the years following the uprising, called the Years of Discord.