Vampire literature

Vampire fiction covers the spectrum of literary work concerned principally with the subject of vampires.

The best known work in this genre is of course Bram Stoker's gothic novel Dracula. It was not, however, the first. Myths and legends of blood-imbibing creatures capable of transmogrification predate the novel form. The immediate antecedent of Dracula is Sheridan le Fanu's classic of the genre, Carmilla. This in turn owes more than a little to John William Polidori's The Vampyre; this work was contemporaneous to Lord Byron's poem The Giaour which also treats on this subject.

Lord Byron introduced many common elements of the vampire theme to Western literature in his epic poem The Giaour (1813). These include the combination of horror and lust that the vampire feels and the concept of the undead passing its inheritance to the living (Note: In the following excerpt, corse is "corpse"):

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Lord Byron in Albanian Costume

But thou, false Infidel! shalt writhe

Beneath avenging Monkir's scythe;

And from its torment 'scape alone

To wander round lost Eblis' throne;

And fire unquenched, unquenchable,

Around, within, thy heart shall dwell;

Nor ear can hear nor tongue can tell

The tortures of that inward hell!

But first, on earth as vampire sent,

Thy corse shall from its tomb be rent:

Then ghastly haunt thy native place,

And suck the blood of all thy race;

There from thy daughter, sister, wife,

At midnight drain the stream of life;

Yet loathe the banquet which perforce

Must feed thy livid living corse:

Thy victims ere they yet expire

Shall know the demon for their sire,

As cursing thee, thou cursing them,

Thy flowers are withered on the stem.

Ironically, Byron's own wild life became the model for the protagonist Lord Ruthven in the first vampire novel, The Vampyre (1819) by John William Polidori. Polidori's Lord Ruthven seems to be the first appearance of the modern vampire, an undead, vampiric being possessing a developed intellect and preternatural charm, as well as physical attraction. By contrast, the vampire of folklore was almost invariably thought of as a hideous, unappealing creature.

An unauthorized sequel to Polidori's novel by Cyprien Bérard called Lord Ruthwen ou les Vampires (1820) was adapted by Charles Nodier into the first vampire stage melodrama, which was in turn made into an opera by German composer Heinrich Marschner.

Bram Stoker's Dracula has been the definitive description of the vampire in popular fiction for the last century. Its portrayal of vampirism as a disease (contagious demonic possession), with its undertones of sex, blood, and death, struck a chord in a Victorian England where tuberculosis and syphilis were common.

Dracula appears to be based at least partially on legends about a real person, Vlad Ţepeş (Vlad the Impaler), a notorious Wallachian (Romanian) prince of the 15th century known also as Vlad III Dracula. He was the son of Vlad II Dracul. Vlad II received the title Dracul ("The Dragon") after being inducted into the Order of the Dragon in 1431. In Romanian, Dracul means dragon or devil, and Dracula (or Draculea) means "son of the Dragon" (or "son of the Devil", though "son of the Dragon" was intended in this case). Stoker is believed to have seen a reference in an article by Emily Gerard who said that Dracula was a word meaning the Devil. (Emily Gerard, "Transylvanian Superstitions." Nineteenth Century (July 1885): 130–150). Oral tradition regarding Ţepeş includes his having made a practice of torturing enemy prisoners and hanging them, or parts of them, such as heads, on stakes around his castle or manor house. Ţepeş may have suffered from porphyria. His rumored periodic abdominal agony, especially after eating, and bouts of delirium might indicate presence of the disease.

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Filmgoers met Dracula (Bela Lugosi) in 1931 in a landmark vampire film.

Stoker also probably derived inspiration from Irish myths of blood-sucking creatures. He also was almost certainly influenced by a contemporary vampire story, Carmilla by Sheridan le Fanu. Le Fanu was Stoker's editor when Stoker was a theatre critic in Dublin, Ireland.

Much 20th-century vampire fiction draws heavily on Stoker's formulation; early films such as Nosferatu and those featuring Bela Lugosi or Christopher Lee are examples of this. Nosferatu, in fact, was clearly based on Dracula, and Stoker's widow sued for copyright infringement and won. As a result of the suit, most prints of the film were destroyed. She later allowed the film to be shown in England.

Though most other works of vampire fiction do not feature Dracula as a character, there is typically a clear inspiration from Stoker, reflected in a fascination with sex and wealth, as well as overwhelmingly frequent use of Gothic settings and iconography. A contemporary descendant is the series of novels by Anne Rice, the most popular in a genre of modern stories that use vampires as their (sometimes sympathetic) protagonists. Darren Shan writes young adult books with a similar slant.

Examples of Vampire Literature

• Varney the Vampire or The Feast of Blood (1845) by James Malcolm Rymer, a Victorian best-seller and pot-boiler
• Carmilla (1872) by Sheridan le Fanu, perhaps the most atmospheric vampire story ever
• Dracula (1897) by Bram Stoker (also the inspiration for many films)
• 'Salem's Lot (1975) by Stephen King
• The Dracula series of novels (1975–1996) by science fiction author Fred Saberhagen.
• Interview with the Vampire (1976) (also a film) and other books in The Vampire Chronicles, by Anne Rice
• Brian Stableford's (1988) novel The Empire of Fear, in which an aristocracy of vampires rules the world; ISBN 0330308742.
• The Undead (1992) and Cold Kiss (1996) by Roxanne Longstreet
• The Season of Passage (1992) by Christopher Pike
• The Anno-Dracula (1992–1998) series by Kim Newman, "what if?" tales extrapolating the events of Dracula if Dracula had not been stopped and had later married Queen Victoria.

Vampire Films and Television

Of the various fictional monsters to be depicted in movies throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, the vampire has been one of the most popular. Vampires have appeared as terrifying monsters in an amazing number of movies, so much so that the depiction of vampires in popular culture is strongly based upon their depiction in movies throughout the years.

For more infomation, please refer to List of vampire movies

Other Media

Video game series featuring vampires primarily use Dracula or Dracula-inspired characters (such as the appearance in Conker's Bad Fur Day). Konami's Castlevania series is the longest running series which uses the Dracula legend, though its writers have made their own alterations to the legend. An exception to this trend is the Legacy of Kain video game series, which features vampires set in an entirely fictional world called Nosgoth.

Other vampire tales seen in several places include:

• Comic books and graphic novels such as Vampirella (1969), Tomb of Dracula (1972), the aforementioned Blade (1973), and 30 Days of Night (2002). In addition, many major superheroes have faced vampire supervillains at some point.
• The video game series Castlevania (1986–present) is a long-running series in which the protagonist battles a new incarnation of Dracula in every game.
• Japanese anime and manga features vampires in several titles, including Vampire Princess Miyu (OAV1988,TV series1997),Nightwalker(1998), Vampire Hunter D (2000), Blood: The Last Vampire (2000), Hellsing (2002), Vampire Host (2004), Tsukihime, Lunar Legend (2003) and Tsukuyomi - Moon Phase (2004).
• Role-playing games such as Vampire: The Masquerade (1992), in which the participants play the roles of fictional vampires (for specifics, see vampires in the World of Darkness).
• The Elder Scrolls game series involves vampires, these vampires were created by a daedra prince (demon lord). They have all the typical attributes, but can absorb the 'life force' of an enemy merely by touching their skin. Whenever they try to sleep they are visited by disturbing nightmares.
• The Darkstalkers (1994) fighting game series (known as Vampire in Japan) features a vampire along with other mythological and horror-themed characters.
• The Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series (1995-present) by Laurell K. Hamilton, featuring a society where vampires are citizens and a necromantic protagonist.
• The video game series Legacy of Kain (1996–present) is a five game long series, in which vampires were a wise, ancient race who had their thirst for blood, immortality, and aversion to sunlight inflicted on them by another race called the Hylden.
• Dance of the Vampires (1997) is a musical from Jim Steinman
• Blade (1998), a comic book and film series, one in a subgenre that features half-human, half-vampire warriors or protagonists.
• Carpe Jugulum (1998) by Terry Pratchett pastiches the traditions of vampire literature, plays with the mythic archetypes and features a tongue-in-cheek reversal of vampyre subculture with young vampires who wear bright clothes, drink wine, and stay up until noon.
• The comic book series Purgatori (1998–present) (Chaos! Comics): a slavegirl in ancient Egypt becomes a Vampire Goddess.
• Mick Farren's Victor Renquist novels, in which vampires were created by a race of aliens known as the Nephilim.
• Jim Butcher's urban fantasy series, The Dresden Files, whose system of magic borrows liberally from various folkloric traditions. White, Red and Black Court vampires all exist, embodying different vampire myths (Black Court being the standard American vampire).