Ch. 10- “Vampirism: Old World Folklore”
-Notion of vampirism traces back to man the hunter – realized blood is source of vitality
-Vampires existed in completely separate ancient civilizations including Egypt, Greece, China, and Babylon
-Ancient Greece: empusa/lamia akin to vampire – winged demon-women who drank blood
-Lilith: first woman on earth in Semitic belief – became jealous of Eve, killed her children
-Medieval Jews made special amulets to protect against Lilith
-Vampire beliefs still strong in Greece – suspected vampires sent island of Santorini b/c of its history of dealing with vampires
-One theory about prevalence of vampire belief in Transylvania: Tibetan Mongols believed in both vampire and bat god, and they may have come in contact with the Asians who eventually migrated to Transylvania
-Another theory: so many different ethnic groups live there (Germans, Hungarians, Gypsies, Romanians) so mixing of folklore occurred
-Garlic: most powerful weapon against vampires in Transylvania
-Vampire graves detected by holes big enough for snakes to pass through – people fill them with water to prevent vampire from escaping
-Rose thorns, poppy seeds spread out b/c vampires are compulsive counters – keeps vampire busy until dawn
-Wooden stake driven through heart or navel is ultimate way to destroy vampire – then burn the body
-Who can become a vampire: criminals, bastards, witches, magicians, excommunicated people, those born with teeth or a caul, unbaptized children, and a seventh son of a seventh son
-Vampires first kill their entire immediate family
-Can’t stray too far from grave
-Stoker read about Elizabeth Bathory – influenced Dracula
-Bathory:
--->Hungarian countess who bathed in the blood of her female servants because she thought it made her skin look young and healthy
--->Killed 650 girls for this purpose
--->Evidently, she liked to bite and tear the flesh of the girls
--->There are some connections between Bathory family and Dracula – they may have even been related
-One theory to explain living vampires: they have a blood disease called porphyria which causes their skin to become very sensitive to light
--->The disease may have been prevalent among Eastern European nobility
--->People with the disease were told by physicians at the time to drink blood
Ch. 11- “Bram Stoker”
-Stoker chose Transylvania because to Western Europeans it was seen as very distant and mysterious
-Born 1847 in Ireland
-Sickly child, not expected to live
-Mother told him true horror stories at his bedside about cholera epidemic
-Started reviewing plays for a paper in Dublin
-Really liked the actor Henry Irving
-Read Carmilla by Joseph Le Fanu, a novella about a female vampire (heavy influence on Dracula)
-Moved to London to work for Irving
-Influences: Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Polidori’s “The Vampyre” which started a literary vampire craze of sorts in the 19th century, and Rymer’s Varney the Vampire
-Other influences: Irving’s role in Faust, Jack the Ripper, Hamlet
-Researched at the British Museum – Stoker’s heavy research led his vampire to very accurately encompass Eastern European vampire folklore
-Stoker modeled Van Helsing after himself
-Original title was The Un-Dead
-Stoker died in 1912 in near poverty. He never saw the success of Dracula.
*Thanks Peter Elliott*
-Notion of vampirism traces back to man the hunter – realized blood is source of vitality
-Vampires existed in completely separate ancient civilizations including Egypt, Greece, China, and Babylon
-Ancient Greece: empusa/lamia akin to vampire – winged demon-women who drank blood
-Lilith: first woman on earth in Semitic belief – became jealous of Eve, killed her children
-Medieval Jews made special amulets to protect against Lilith
-Vampire beliefs still strong in Greece – suspected vampires sent island of Santorini b/c of its history of dealing with vampires
-One theory about prevalence of vampire belief in Transylvania: Tibetan Mongols believed in both vampire and bat god, and they may have come in contact with the Asians who eventually migrated to Transylvania
-Another theory: so many different ethnic groups live there (Germans, Hungarians, Gypsies, Romanians) so mixing of folklore occurred
-Garlic: most powerful weapon against vampires in Transylvania
-Vampire graves detected by holes big enough for snakes to pass through – people fill them with water to prevent vampire from escaping
-Rose thorns, poppy seeds spread out b/c vampires are compulsive counters – keeps vampire busy until dawn
-Wooden stake driven through heart or navel is ultimate way to destroy vampire – then burn the body
-Who can become a vampire: criminals, bastards, witches, magicians, excommunicated people, those born with teeth or a caul, unbaptized children, and a seventh son of a seventh son
-Vampires first kill their entire immediate family
-Can’t stray too far from grave
-Stoker read about Elizabeth Bathory – influenced Dracula
-Bathory:
--->Hungarian countess who bathed in the blood of her female servants because she thought it made her skin look young and healthy
--->Killed 650 girls for this purpose
--->Evidently, she liked to bite and tear the flesh of the girls
--->There are some connections between Bathory family and Dracula – they may have even been related
-One theory to explain living vampires: they have a blood disease called porphyria which causes their skin to become very sensitive to light
--->The disease may have been prevalent among Eastern European nobility
--->People with the disease were told by physicians at the time to drink blood
Ch. 11- “Bram Stoker”
-Stoker chose Transylvania because to Western Europeans it was seen as very distant and mysterious
-Born 1847 in Ireland
-Sickly child, not expected to live
-Mother told him true horror stories at his bedside about cholera epidemic
-Started reviewing plays for a paper in Dublin
-Really liked the actor Henry Irving
-Read Carmilla by Joseph Le Fanu, a novella about a female vampire (heavy influence on Dracula)
-Moved to London to work for Irving
-Influences: Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Polidori’s “The Vampyre” which started a literary vampire craze of sorts in the 19th century, and Rymer’s Varney the Vampire
-Other influences: Irving’s role in Faust, Jack the Ripper, Hamlet
-Researched at the British Museum – Stoker’s heavy research led his vampire to very accurately encompass Eastern European vampire folklore
-Stoker modeled Van Helsing after himself
-Original title was The Un-Dead
-Stoker died in 1912 in near poverty. He never saw the success of Dracula.
*Thanks Peter Elliott*
