Could Schizophrenia be the Answer to the
Mysterious Vampire Legend?
The vampire legend and many behaviors and experiences of schizophrenics seem to share many common traits. The traits that are most recognizable are "fears of being enclosed, periods of semistarvation or complete starvation, which can be associated with periodic gorging, reversal of the day-night cycle, and a preoccupation with or dread of mirrors" (Kayton 304). Though the term 'schizophrenia' or 'demence precoce' was only introduced in 1852 (Boyle 43), behaviors of people affected by this illness have been documented much earlier.
The concept of a dead person returning in his living physical form and feeding on the living is considered a vampire. The vampire is believed to also be capable of transmitting his vampirism to those he infect or bite. Kayton recognizes that though this belief has been found in early writings of the Babylonians, Semites, and Egyptians, the most famous vampire scare swept Europe in 1730. This vampire epidemic lasted approximately five years (305).
The legend consistency continues with adolescent and young adult schizophrenia. It is presented to us that young suicide victims were most likely believed to become vampires and attack members of their families (Kayton 304-05). Suicide was not an uncommon event among schizophrenic patients (Boyle 255). Suicide patients are a very important part of this equation because according to the legend in England suicides were buried with a stake pierced in or near the heart. This was to ensure that that the ghost of the person would not come back and haunt the living, to prevent the suicide victim from becoming a vampire (Kayton 305). In Dracula, Lucy was killed after she had already started to haunt the living. She was killed after with a stake driven through her heart as a "duty to others" and to the dead, so that she may truly be "passed away", as "God's true dead" (266, 277-279).
Some documented cases of vampirism indicate that sometimes the psychodynamics' of vampires can erupt into materialized behavioral psychopathology (Kayton 304). For example, Vincenz Verzeni an Italian in 1872, a Frenchman named Leger in 1827, and a German Fritz Haarman demonstrate to the rare appearance of clinical vampirism (Kayton 306). Haarman himself killed approximately 24 adolescent males. This is interesting since many believe that vampires only attack those of the opposite sex. Even Bram Stoker's Dracula disproves this belief when the Count (Dracula) informs the three vampire women that Jonathan belongs to him (55).
Some of the most common symptoms of schizophrenia include delusions that a major catastrophe is about to occur and hallucinations, seeing or hearing something that does not exist. These traits were repeatedly shown in the novel and aid the reader
In a world with ghosts, monsters, demons, and ghouls, there is one being that resonates in everyone’s mind. The idea of these creatures can be found in almost every culture on the planet in one form or another. They prey on the weak and they feast on the blood of their victims. They are compared to a fox for being quick and cunning, but also rather seductive in their nature. With their unholy existence one can only describe them as almost demonic. So what is this horrid creature? Well it is none other than the vampire, a creature as old as time itself. Throughout history there have been many different variations of the vampire, each with their own unique abilities. But one cannot help but mention
The late nineteenth century Irish novelist, Bram Stoker is most famous for creating Dracula, one of the most popular and well-known vampire stories ever written. Dracula is a gothic, “horror novel about a vampire named Count Dracula who is looking to move from his native country of Transylvania to England” (Shmoop Editorial Team). Unbeknownst of Dracula’s plans, Jonathan Harker, a young English lawyer, traveled to Castle Dracula to help the count with his plans and talk to him about all his options. At first Jonathan was surprised by the Count’s knowledge, politeness, and overall hospitality. However, the longer Jonathan remained in the castle the more uneasy and suspicious he became as he began to realize just how strange and different Dracula was. As the story unfolded, Jonathan realized he is not just a guest, but a prisoner as well. The horror in the novel not only focuses on the “vampiric nature” (Soyokaze), but also on the fear and threat of female sexual expression and aggression in such a conservative Victorian society.
Stevenson, John Allen. A Vampire in the Mirror: The Sexuality of Dracula. 2nd ed. Vol. 103. N.p.: Modern Language Association, 1988. JSTOR. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. .
Vampires have been viewed with fear and fascination for centuries. Of all the vampires in literature, Bram Stoker’s Count Dracula is probably the most prominent vampire. Recently, there has been an upsurge of public interest in socially acceptable vampires, like the Cullens in the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer. This essay will contrast Stoker’s Dracula with Carlisle Cullen, one of the newer vampires from the Twilight series. They will be examined in terms of their origins and how they dealt with immortality.
Storey Amanda, Strieter Carrie et. Al, (2005), Richard Trenton Chase “Dracula Killer”, “The Vampire of Sacramento”, Department of Psychology, Radford University. (1-6)
Nevid, J. S., Rathus, S. A., & Greene, B. (2011). Schizophrenia and Other Psycholtic Disorders. In J. Marshall (Ed.), Abnormal psychology in a changing world (pp. 390-425).
Humanity has always been fascinated with the allure of immortality and although in the beginning vampires were not a symbol of this, as time passed and society changed so did the ideas and perceptions surrounding them. The most important thing to ask yourself at this point is 'What is immortality?' Unfortunately this isn't as easily answered as asked. The Merriam Webster Dictionary says immortality is 'the quality or state of being immortal; esp : unending existence' while The World Book Encyclopedia states it as 'the continued and eternal life of a human being after the death of the body.' A more humorous definition can be found in The Devil's Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce:
The definition of a vampire is a corpse that leaves its grave at night to drink the blood of the living by biting their necks with long pointed canine teeth. In the 1800s the definition of a vampire was a whole different case, a vampire was a corpse to basically prey on its family members and instead of drinking blood they took the souls (Urban Dictionary).
The novel tackles the vampire’s strengths and weaknesses, and some of these reflect the dark side to the age of moralistic views and actions. Bram Stoker brings light upon the humanity’s dark and cloudy weaknesses and limitations of their everyday living. Dracula is the Satan to this story, for he is fake, cruel, humiliating, and outright evil. "My revenge has just begun! I spread it over centuries and time is on my side." (Stoker 339) Dracula continues to boast about his great powers to the ones that have set out to rid of his existence. Dracula cannot look past his own selfishness to see that he is not immortal, but simply another creature of a higher power (God). The novel is set in the Victorian era, and this opened the gate for numerous beliefs about the vampire, and also the speculation on the unknown skyrocketed. People reac...
Dracula is “un-dead”, once human before his vampire state and clearly separate from human form, establishing his frightening allure. His fangs, hands and sharp nails are horrifying up close. He is not corpse at first look, mysteriously resisting the decay of death. Dr. Seward comments, “she was, if possible, more radiantly beautiful than ever; and I could not believe she was dead” on Lucy’s vampire state (Stoker 200). At several points in the novel Dracula is life like, “simply gorged with blood; he lay like a leech, exhausted with his repletion” (Stoker 52). The monstrous life in death is an “essential gift of Stoker’s vampires to the twentieth century; a reminder, not of the dreadfulness of death, but the innate horror of vitality” ( Auerbach 95). Edward is opposite in appearance to Dracula. The venom from the bite that transforms human into vampire freezes their appearance forever. Edward was bitten at 17, and never labeled as horrifying.
Suicide claims almost one million people globally every year, there is however a realization that these losses of lives due to suicide can be avoided through concern for those with psychotic illnesses. This research by Oxford Psychiatry Library (the second edition) of Suicide Prevention, the research investigates the therapeutic measures that can be put in place in order to prevent suicide attempts among people with mental challenges such as schizophrenia.. This book places suicide in contemporaneous as well as historical context.
Simply searching through articles, databases, and other resources, vampires are depicted as malicious and monstrous creatures. First off, the vampire is famous for its dark and mysterious image affiliated with fear and death. In many ways, “the vampire can be seen through its most basic characterization as the bringer of death”(Stevens par. 3) and evokes a “marginal world of darkness, secrecy, vulnerability, excess, and horror” (Stevens par. 6). Obviously, the vampire has adopted a dark, fearful, and mysterious image. Next, vampires are famous for their unique characteristics. Dictionary.com defines the vampire as “a preternatural being, commonly believed to be a reanimated corpse, that is said to suck the blood of sleeping persons at night”(dictionary.com). Vampires are also known for their distinct weakness suck as “various tailsmans and herbs”(Funk and Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia) but the only way to kill a vampire is “only by cremation or if a stake is driven through their hearts”(Funk and Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia). Another distinct and commonly known characteristic of the vampire is their fear of the light as it could potentially kill them. Emotionally, the vampires are almost viewed as sex symbols as they “indulge in their desires ...
The whole idea of vampirism has very dark and negative connotations to it, but still innately we are fascinated by it. In Dracula by Bram Stoker, we see each of the characters battling with the theme of good vs bad. We see characters facing situations where they either respond with good actions and words or evil actions and words. Many of the characters try to figure out if we are people who make mistakes or we are either completely bad or good. Count Dracula’s castle is a very dark place filled with “darkness” and taboos that society outcasted and shunned away, but yet this is where Dracula chooses to reside. In the castle all the characters seem to experience and do things, that makes us question; does the presence of Count Dracula make
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...