My seven-year sweetheart brought this article to my attention, prompting the following letter to the editor at the New Yorker:
Joan Acocella’s question, “Why Do Vampires Still Thrill?” leads her through the transformation of the vampire’s portrayal, from “grotesque creatures” in Eastern Europe to a “handsome revenant” in Louisiana. Acocella also mentions the many modern analyses of vampire stories, specifically Stoker’s “Dracula,” and their prevalent focus on sex. She does not, however, give much attention to the religious origins of the vampire –a curse from God for severe sinners – or the role of religion in following vampire stories. I wonder if Acocella or other vampire scholars have considered the vampire’s change from repulsive curse to sex symbol – look at the modern actors and actresses who have played vampire roles – as indicative of a shift in cultural beliefs, specifically from religious to secular. Eternity on earth when there’s no promise of heaven.
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5 comments:
It can also be seen as a descent into devil worship, that the cursed are now considered attractive. Consider the idol worshipers pictured in biblical epics, erotically gesticulating and rubbing themselves on Baal or the Golden Calf. Is this not the picture of modern vampire worship and glorification? The vampires are now the ultimate hedonists, able to live forever doing whatever they like. The demon thing is no problem, 'cause, like, there is no hell, man. So where do the demonic powers and eternal life come from?
Secularism may be prevalent in the scientific community, but everywhere else all sorts of lunatic ideas are afloat, including the one that all points of view are valid. Yes, they are all valid, but that doesn't mean some aren't nonsensical.
People believe in Alien visitors and abductions, the Loch Ness Monster and Bigfoot, Astrology and Homeopathy, Psychic Detectives and Ghost Hunters, Disneyesque Wilderness and the Noble Savage. And in America, most people believe in God. This is not a trend towards secularism, it's a return to paganism and animism, superstition and lucky underwear.
I like your opening point, though I believe devil worship requires an acceptance of God's presence, followed by a rejection of Him as one's ruler/idol. This doesn't match the secularism that I associate with the modern vampire.
Secularism prevails not only in the scientific community, but also in the daily lives and culture of the majority of people consuming and producing the "literature" of these modern vampires. That's not to say that these people are secular, but that their values and quotidian life have less foundation in religion.
Finally, I don’t think the writers and audiences of modern vampire literature actually believe vampires exist, unlike the other beliefs you listed. And that’s part of the point. We’ve separated vampires from their religious roots, as well as any belief in them, and in that process artists and popular culture have redefined the vampire’s symbol.
In the book The Psychic Soviet by Ian Svenonius, the singer from Nation Of Ulysses and Make Up, he writes about vampires and their symbolic counterparts in modern media. He also briefly touches upon the transformation from the Nosferatu vampire to the modern Gary Oldman/Brad Pitt/Robert Pattinson sexy vampires. It is a pretty interesting essay, and like most of his writing, looks at the topic from a weird and unexpected angle while kind of dissecting what a vampire is and what it says about contemporary culture, mostly using rock and roll as a reference point. I can make you a copy of it if you would like, unless you want to pick up a copy of the book which I would recommend, not only for content but also as an object.
Thanks for letting me in on this. Looks like I'm definitely not the first to think and write about the topic, which is no surprise, and that others have done a good job going at it. I would like to see a copy of the book, at which point it sounds like I'll want to buy it.
I believe that Ann rice and Stephenie Meyer are both Mormons (talk about strange beliefs) and elements in their stories mirror some of those Mormon beliefs. Read up on Mormons and you will see some of these parallels (divine essence, etc.)
Devil worship does not imply a rejection of God, it implies acceptance of the Devil as God.
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