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The evolution of vampires in pop culture
The evolution of vampires in pop culture
Buffy the vampire analysis
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With Buffy the Vampire Slayer taking the Australian television market by storm, it is becoming increasingly obvious that Buffy does more than just kick vampire butt.
Star Sarah Michelle Gellar not only entertains teens nation wide, but also questions morals and values – the same values that have been plaguing the gothic genre since Bram Stoker’s Dracula – and socialises with the majority of young Australians’ lives.
Popular culture is becoming increasingly consumed by a moralistic tone, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer is the perfect example. Ever since Stoker wrote his highly publicised novel in 1897, Dracula has had a large effect on today’s society.
The classic good versus evil morals that Stoker introduced in his book is highly evident in many television programs presently reaching out to a wide range of audiences. The series involving Buffy is based upon this very theme.
Gellar plays the heroine, the good guy (or girl) that must defeat evil at all costs. While she is sexy, sleek, exceptionally strong and wears the right clothes – in other words, the perfect heroine in the minds of wide eyed teenage Australians – the job she has to perform saves lives. The enemies she has to defeat are both scary and extremely dangerous. The wider audience not only sides with Buffy, they connect with her. And it is this connection that sets the perfect platform for moral and valued lessons to be passed on. Buffy the Vampire Slayer is an adapted version of Dracula, clearly evident through the...
...oday. Taking for granted a "normal" life that revolves around school, parties and friends. The Crucible and The Matrix exhibit more cultural and social values than Buffy and they are both done exceptionally well, covering many different themes and aspects without taking away from the plot or story.
This fictional character was soon to be famous, and modified for years to come into movie characters or even into cereal commercials. But the original will never be forgotten: a story of a group of friends all with the same mission, to destroy Dracula. The Count has scared many people, from critics to mere children, but if one reads between the lines, Stoker’s true message can be revealed. His personal experiences and the time period in which he lived, influenced him to write Dracula in which he communicated the universal truth that good always prevails over evil. Religion was a big part of people’s lives back in Stoker’s time.
“Dracula, in one aspect, is a novel about the types of Victorian women and the representation of them in Victorian English society” (Humphrey). Through Mina, Lucy and the daughters of Dracula, Stoker symbolizes three different types of woman: the pure, the tempted and the impure. “Although Mina and Lucy possess similar qualities there is striking difference between the two” (Humphrey). Mina is the ideal 19th century Victorian woman; she is chaste, loyal and intelligent. On the other hand, Lucy’s ideal Victorian characteristics began to fade as she transformed from human to vampire and eventually those characteristics disappeared altogether. Lucy no longer embodied the Victorian woman and instead, “the swe...
While Bram Stoker’s Dracula has been described as the “quintessence of evil creatures we meet in our everyday lives” and “the Darkness” in the hearts of men (Herbert, 2004, pp. 62), Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight
Conclusively, while Bram Stokers novel Dracula is seen as a gothic and horror story, I argue that it is a novel that seeks to address female sexuality directly. Seen through numerous passages, Stoker confronts and battles the views between sexuality during the Victorian era though his genius of characterization of characters present within the novel. As it seems highly intentional to me, I respect the way in which he criticizes and critiques upon female sexuality by bringing into light new ideas regarding female desires. When contrasting his text upon today’s culture, the differences to how one perceived the vampire has changed significantly.
Carol A. Senf uses a critical theory lens when she picks apart Bram Stoker’s Dracula. The majority of literary critics interpret this popular myth to be the opposition of good and evil, they turn a blind eye to the more specifically literary matters such as method of narration, characterization, and style. Carol Senf’s critical essay “Dracula: the Unseen Face in the Mirror” she believes that Stokers novel “revolves, not around the conquest of Evil by Good, but on the similarities between the two” (Senf 421). Her argument is as follows:
Bram Stoker’s Dracula has many examples of Gender Criticism throughout the text. While most male characters tend to be masculine in the Victorian era in which it was written, there are many instances where these male characters exhibit feminine characteristics. There are also female characters that take on a masculine role, completely deviating from their normal conforming feminine ways of the time. Understanding what normal man and woman behaviors are for this period in time is essential in pointing out the inconsistencies that make certain characters seem out of the normal expectations. The Victorian era is one that differs from conformities of today. During the course of the story it is written from many points of view, it is told through
Similar to almost every piece of literature ever created, Dracula by Bram Stoker has been interpreted many different ways, being torn at from every angle possible. Just as one might find interest in interpreting novels differently, he or she might also find interest in the plot, prose, or theme, all of which ultimately lead to the novels overall tone. Throughout the novel, it becomes blatant that the novel contains an underlying theme of female incompetence and inferiority. Through a true feminist’s eyes, this analysis can clearly be understood by highlighting the actions of Mina and Lucy, the obvious inferior females in the book. Through Stoker’s complete and utter manipulation of Mina and Lucy, he practically forces the reader to analyze the co-existence of dominant males and inferior females in society and to simultaneously accept the fact that the actual text of Dracula is reinforcing the typical female stereotypes that have developed throughout the ages.
Vampires have long been an icon that challenges the idea of ‘myth’ while also being a perfect example of the term itself. Long before Bram Stokers Dracula, there was Carmella, the lesbian vampire. Before this there were the ancient Greek tales of the Lamia, who are best described by Lawson "....the chief characteristics of the Lamiae, apart from their thirst for blood, are their uncleanliness, their gluttony, and their stupidity" (LAWSON) that would suck the life essence of children. The difference with the vampire, however, is that while other monstrosities of literature and entertainment are considered mostly a natural evil, that is, in and of themselves capable of harm to general human interest, vampires are a commentary of relationships through a sort of
In Twilight, Edward Cullen presents the question; “ But what if I’m not the hero? What if I’m the bad guy?” The role of vampires is very controversial. Back in the day they were evil, soulless monsters and people genuinely feared them. However, in the present day it seems that we have grown to love them and even hope to one day be them. There are a plethora of vampire stories and many of them have become immense hits. With so many vampire stories, it is not uncommon that readers are able to identify a vast amount of similarities. Although similar in aspects, there are still many differences between the classic and modern day vampires. Two highly popular stories, in which we can easily identify similarities and differences, are Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight.
In this investigation, I aim to explore how females are represented in horror films. The representation of females and males has changed dramatically in society and this is reflected in horror films. However, traditionally women in general are characterised as the damsel in distress because stereotypically they are playing the weaker role and are in instantaneous danger and attacked by a stronger character, usually played by a male.
In Dracula, Stoker relied greatly upon the conventions of Gothic fiction. Traditionally gothic elements such as dark and sublime settings, and the innocent threatened by the ineffable evil obviously feature in Dracula. Stoker modernises his novel by bringing the set...
This fetish has been manifested in the movies I view, the television shows I watch, and the books I read. When my obsession with reading is crossed with my obsession with monsters, the result is a bookshelf containing more vampire novels than most people would consider healthy. I have discovered that every vampire novel varies vastly; no two books are ever alike. For example, the Twilight Series, the Anita Blake Series and the Vampire Chronicles Series have different legends and lore, different relationships between vampires and society, and different genres, theme, and purpose; this array of novels displays most clearly the range of audience the vampire genre can cater. The Twilight series is a bestselling series written by Stephanie Meyer that has captivated millions of teenage girls.
The author’s op-ed piece was published in 2009, the very peak of the vampire contagion, where one could find these creatures wherever they looked. This pandemonium that arose from vampires is what drove del Toro and Hogan to pen “Why Vampires Never Die.” Furthermore, the purpose behind this essay is to give an abridged description of the past of vampires for the people who had become fanatics of the creatures. Also, this essay showed how vampires have persisted in pop culture. They suggest that vampires have been remade by diverse cultures at different times, and this change echoes that society's angst and concerns. The novelist’s imply that Stroker’s Dracula may mirror an exaggerated human on a prim...
"Have you ever thought about it? What would happen if...you could ever turn me? You can't, by the way, you couldnt' so..no bad ideas. I'm positive the universe makes Slayer-blood like...demon-infection-resistant-y or something. What ? That sounds like it should be a thing. But did you ever, you know, think about it?" Buffy didn't even know what made her ask. No matter how he answered she was pretty sure it'd make her want to hit him. But the thought had occurred to her a few nights ago, so now they were alone, cozy and lazy on the back porch, she figured why not. Worst comes to worst, could always punch him.