Tables of vampire traits

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The following tables compare traits given to vampires in folklore and fiction. Over time, some attributes now regarded as integral became incorporated into the vampire's profile: fangs and vulnerability to sunlight appeared over the course of the 19th century, with Varney the Vampire and Count Dracula both bearing protruding teeth,[1] and Murnau's Nosferatu (1922) the first vampire to be killed by daylight.[2]

Although Bram Stoker's novel is the best known vampire fiction of the 19th century, it is the aristocratic figure of Lord Ruthven who is thought to have inspired the elegant and suave creature of stage and film.[3]

The cloak appeared in stage productions of the 1920s, with a high collar introduced by playwright Hamilton Deane to help Dracula 'vanish' on stage.[4] Lord Ruthven and Varney were able to be healed by moonlight, although no account of this is known in traditional folklore.[5]

Contents

[edit] Appearance

- Skin Colour Fangs Reflection Shadow Attractiveness
European folklore Ruddy or dark[6] No[7] No[8] No[8] Hideous
Varney the Vampire "White and bloodless"[9] Yes[9] Hideous, but has hypnotizing eyes[9]
Bram Stoker Pale Yes[10] No[10] No[11] Alluring
Nosferatu Pale Yes No Yes Hideous[12]
Anne Rice Pale Yes Yes Yes Typically alluring
Buffy Ordinary † Retractable No[13] Yes Ordinary, but hideous when in their natural "vampire form"
Blade Pale Yes  ? Yes Ordinary
Count Duckula Green Yes No No Alluring
Discworld Pale Yes  ?  ? Alluring
True Blood Pale Retractable Yes[14] Yes Alluring
Twilight Pale No Yes Yes Alluring
The Vampire Diaries Ordinary Retractable Yes Yes Alluring
30 Days of Night Pale Yes Yes Yes Ordinary
Count Chocula Tanned No Yes Yes Comical
Count von Count Purple Yes No[15] Yes Resembles a squat Bela Lugosi[16]
Let the Right One In Pale No Yes Yes Ordinary
Preacher Pale No Yes Yes Ordinary
Alucard Ordinary Yes No No Alluring
Being Human Ordinary Retractable No Yes Ordinary
Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter Pale Yes No Yes Ordinary, but some bloodlines seem to get more attractive with age, some less
Moonlight Ordinary Retractable Yes Yes Ordinary
Blood Omen/Legacy of Kain Some pale, some other skin pigmentations Yes ? ? Mostly hideous

^  Vampires had pale skin in the film

[edit] Weaknesses

Weaknesses which are marked as 'no' are generally not fatal. All fatal weaknesses have been marked as such.

Stake Sunlight Decapitation Drowning Fire Silver Garlic Christian symbols Running water Invitation
European Folklore Fatal; ash[17], hawthorn[18], or oak[19] preferred Nocturnal [10] Fatal [20] Fatal Fatal Yes Yes [21] Yes Yes [22] Yes [8]
Varney the Vampire No commits suicide in Mount Vesuvius[9] No No
Bram Stoker Fatal; white oak preferred Weakened during the daylight hours but not actually affected by the sun "light" Fatal Fatal Fatal No Yes Yes Yes Yes
Nosferatu  ? Fatal [23]  ?  ?  ?  ?  ?  ?  ?  ?
Anne Rice No Fatal; older vampires have higher tolerances [24] Fatal No Fatal No No No  ?  ?
Buffy Fatal[25] Fatal [25] Fatal [25] No [13] Fatal No  ? Yes [13][25] No Yes [13]
Blade Fatal[14] Any ultraviolet light is fatal[14] Yes  ? No Yes[14] Yes[14] No[14] No  ?
Discworld Fatal Yes † Fatal Fatal Fatal No No † No † No † Yes
True Blood Fatal Fatal; older vampires have lower tolerances  ? No Yes Yes No[14] No[14]  ? Yes
Twilight No Identifiable as non-human by sparkling skin No No Fatal No No No No No
The Vampire Diaries Fatal Fatal — Special ring protects them ? ? ? No No No No Yes
Count Chocula ? No ? Becomes soggy in milk[26] ? ? ? ? No No
Count von Count ? Enjoys sunlight, sleeps at night ? ? ? No ? ? No Obsessive urge to count anything on hand
Let the Right One In Fatal Fatal ? ? ? No No No No Fatal, if invite remains absent for long enough
Preacher No Fatal No No ? No No No No No
Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter Fatal Fatal Fatal No Fatal Yes No Any religious iconography if wielded by a true believer No Yes
Alucard No No No No No Fatal for most vampires, not Alucard[27] No No Yes No
Cirque du Freak Fatal Highly susceptible to sunburns, Eventually Fatal Fatal Fatal Fatal No No No Superstitious No
World of Darkness Immobilizes Eventually Fatal Usually Fatal No Eventually Fatal Immune unless with flaw Immune unless with flaw Immune unless with flaw or when wielded by someone with true faith Immune unless with flaw Immune unless with flaw
Being Human Yes No ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Yes
Lord Erebus ? No No No Yes ? ? ? ? Yes
Moonlight Causes paralysis No, it makes them progressively weaker Yes No Yes Yes, it is toxic and can eventually kill if left in too long No No No No
Blood Omen/Legacy of Kain Fatal Fatal to weaker vampires ? Fatal Fatal in most if not all ? ? No Fatal to most ?

^  Cultural aversion to sunlight. Can turn to ash if exposed to bright light.

^  Cultural aversion.

^  Cultural aversion to all religious symbols.

^  Cultural aversion.

[edit] Supernatural Powers

  • 'Glamour' refers to the ability to influence a mortal. (AKA the spell gift, mesmerize, or the Jedi mind trick.)
  • It is common in fiction for vampires to gain additional, uncommon powers as they age. These have been noted as 'Gifted'.
Immortality Supernatural strength Supernatural senses Supernatural speed Supernatural healing Flight Shapeshifting Glamour Telepathy Telekinesis Pyrokinesis Other
European Folklore Yes No No No Yes  ?  ? No No some poltergeist-like activity No ?
Varney the Vampire Yes Yes  ?  ? regenerates by moonlight[9]  ?  ? Yes  ?  ? No ?
Bram Stoker Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Wolf, bat, dust, fog Yes  ?  ? No ?
Nosferatu Yes  ?  ?  ?  ?  ?  ?  ?  ?  ? ? ?
Anne Rice Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Gifted No Gifted Gifted Gifted Gifted ?
Buffy Yes [13] Yes [13][25] Yes [13] Yes Yes [13][25] No † No Gifted No No No ?
Blade Yes Yes  ? Yes Yes No Only Dracula No No No No ?
Discworld  ? Yes Yes  ? Can resurrect from ashes as a bat Yes Yes Yes No No ?
True Blood Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Gifted No Yes Gifted No No ?
Twilight Yes Yes Yes Yes If not burned, body parts can re-attach No No Gifted Gifted No No ?
The Vampire Diaries Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes ? ? Yes No No No control animals and fog
Count Chocula Yes Yes No Yes ? Yes Bat No No Able to levitate marshmallows No ?
Count von Count As a Muppet, does not age ? Preternatural counting abilities ? ? No No ? Has exhibited gift for hypnotism[citation needed] ? ? Can generate thunder by counting
Let the Right One In Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Limited No No No No ?
Preacher Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No No No No ?
Alucard Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes ? ? ?
Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter Yes Yes Yes Yes Wounds inflicted by silver heal human slow. Holy water also inhibits healing. Gifted Rare Yes Stronger after biting ? Gifted ?
World of Darkness† Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes ?
Being Human Yes ? ? ? Yes ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Cirque Du Freak Extended Life Yes Yes Yes Via saliva No No ? Among higher ranking full vampires Possible to create illusion of telekinesis No ?
Moonlight Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No ? Can be Developed with age No No ?
Blood Omen/Legacy of Kain Yes Yes Mostly smell ? Yes No Wolf, bat swarm, mist No Gifted Gifted No Corruptions caused some to gain abilities other clans did not such as aversion to water

^  In the film, vampires could levitate. ^  Most vampiric powers in the World of Darkness are the result of Disciplines, which must be learned. Thus, while all the powers on this list are available to any vampire, immortality is the only one they're all guaranteed to have.

Shapeshifters exist in True Blood and Twilight, but they are separate creatures from vampires.

[edit] Reproduction

Sterile Reproduce via bite Reproduce via transfusion Inhabited by demons
European Folklore No  ?  ? Yes [28]
Varney the Vampire  ? Yes  ? No
Bram Stoker  ? Yes  ? No
Nosferatu  ? Yes  ? No
Anne Rice Yes No Yes No †
Buffy Yes No [13] Yes [13] Yes [13]
Blade No Yes  ? No
Discworld No If desired  ? No
True Blood Yes No Yes No
Twilight Males not sterile Yes No No
The Vampire Diaries ? No If killed while vampire blood is still in the system No
Count Chocula  ? No  ? No
Count von Count  ?  ?  ? No
Alucard  ? Provided the other is a virgin of the opposite sex; otherwise creates ghouls  ? Yes
Let the Right One In Yes Yes ? No
Count Duckula No No Yes No
Preacher ? Yes ? No
Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter Only young male vampires can reproduce with a human mother, may cause extreme birth defects Yes ? No
World of Darkness Yes with the exception of extremely thin-blooded (14th+ generation) vampires No Yes No
Cirque Du Freak Yes with exclusion of Destiny's "children" No Yes No
Moonlight Yes No Yes, Human must be near death and drink sire's blood No
Blood Omen/Legacy of Kain ? Yes ? ?

^  In Queen of the Damned, it is strongly suggested that all vampirism stems from an ancient case of demonic inhabitation. However, individual vampires are not represented as inhabited by individual demons.

[edit] Similarities in plot settings

Many depictions of vampires include depictions of other mythological creatures.

Dracula Werewolves Telepaths Non-Vampire Lovers
Bram Stoker Title character No No Yes
Nosferatu Title character No No No
Anne Rice No No The Body Snatcher & other human psychics Yes
Buffy Yes [25] Yes [25] Yes [25] † Yes
Blade Yes  ?  ? No
Discworld No Yes Yes Yes
True Blood  ? Yes Yes † Yes
Twilight No Yes None other than some vampires Yes
Count Chocula Brief cameo Fruit Brute No No
Count von Count Is a comical reimagining No Not as such Vampire lover
Count Duckula Yes Yes No No
Let the Right One In No No No Yes
Preacher No No No Yes
Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter Using the name Dracula has been banned Yes Yes Yes
Being Human No Yes No Yes
Cirque Du Freak No No Yes Yes
Moonlight No No Yes, it can be developed with age Yes
Blood Omen/Legacy of Kain No Yes Yes Originally planned, but apparently scrapped before final release

^  Telepaths in these works could not read the minds of vampires.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Skal, V for Vampire, p. 99.
  2. ^ Skal, V for Vampire, p. 104.
  3. ^ Skal, V for Vampire, p. 175.
  4. ^ Skal, V for Vampire, p. 62.
  5. ^ Silver & Ursini, The Vampire Film, pp. 38-39.
  6. ^ Barber, Vampires, Burial and Death, pp. 41–42.
  7. ^ Barber, Vampires, Burial and Death, p. 2.
  8. ^ a b c Spence, Lewis (1960). An Encyclopaedia of Occultism. New Hyde Parks: University Books. OCLC 3417655. 
  9. ^ a b c d e Skal, V for Vampire, p. 211.
  10. ^ a b c Silver & Ursini, The Vampire Film, p. 25.
  11. ^ Bram Stoker (1897). Dracula: a mystery story. [Google Books], pp. 38, 239.
  12. ^ Skal, V for Vampire, p. 155.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Vampires in the Buffyverse". http://www.atpobtvs.com/vampires.html. Retrieved 14 September 2009. 
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h Beam, Christopher (2008, November 20). "I Vant To Upend Your Expectations: Why movie vampires always break all the vampire rules". Slate Magazine. http://www.slate.com/id/2205143/. Retrieved 2009-07-17. 
  15. ^ "The Count counts letters to himself". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xunXQPEcoHM. Retrieved 2009-11-19.  At 0:26
  16. ^ Krensky, Stephen. Vampires (Monster Chronicles). Millbrook Press. 
  17. ^ (German) Alseikaite-Gimbutiene, Marija (1946). Die Bestattung in Litauen in der vorgeschichtlichen Zeit. Tübingen. OCLC 1059867.  (thesis)
  18. ^ Vukanović, T.P. (1959). "The Vampire". Journal of the Gypsy Lore Society 38: 111–18. 
  19. ^ (German) Klapper, Joseph (1909). "Die schlesischen Geschichten von den schädingenden Toten". Mitteilungen der schlesischen Gesellschaft für Volkskunde 11: 58–93. 
  20. ^ Barber, Vampires, Burial and Death, p. 73.
  21. ^ Barber, Vampires, Burial and Death, p. 63.
  22. ^ Burkhardt, "Vampirglaube und Vampirsage", p. 221.
  23. ^ Skal, David J. (1996). V is for Vampire. Plume/Penguin. pp. 104. ISBN 0-452-27173-8. 
  24. ^ Nina Auerbach (1981) Our Vampires, Ourselves: 119–47.
  25. ^ a b c d e f g h i Truett, Larry. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". http://www.spookyfiles.com/Buffy-the-Vampire-Slayer/. Retrieved 14 September 2009. 
  26. ^ D.M.R. Georget, R. Parker, and A.C. Smith, 'A Study of the Effects of Water Content on the Compaction Behaviour of Breakfast Cereal Flakes." "Powder Technology," November, 1994, vol. 81, no. 2, pp. 189-96.
  27. ^ http://www.funtrivia.com/en/Television/Hellsing-11143.html
  28. ^ Barber, Vampires, Burial and Death, pp. 50-51.

[edit] Cited texts

  • Barber, Paul (1988). Vampires, Burial and Death: Folklore and Reality. New York: Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-04126-8. 
  • Skal, David J. (1996). V is for Vampire. New York: Plume. ISBN 0-452-27173-8. 

[edit] See also

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