Works Cited

Arpe, Malene. “His vampires aren’t pretty; It started as a TV pitch. But the director stuck with nasty characters and put them in a novel.” The Toronto Star. (June 13, 2009 Saturday ): 878 words. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 6 Nov. 2012.

Atwater-Rhodes, Amelia. In the Forests of the Night. Random House Children’s Books, 2000. Print. 

Bailie, Helen T. “Blood Ties: The Vampire Lover In The Popular Romance.” Journal Of American Culture 34.2 (2011): 141-148. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Nov. 2012.

Beck, Bernard. “Fearless Vampire Kissers: Bloodsuckers We Love In Twilight, True Blood And Others.” Multicultural Perspectives 13.2 (2011): 90-92. Academic Search Premier. Web. 6 Nov. 2012.

Campbell, Sarah, and Lindsey C. Dunn. “Marketing Teen Read Week.” Young Adult Library Services 6.4 (2008): 24-26. Academic Search Premier. Web. 6 Nov. 2012.

Clapp, Rodney. “Vampires Among Us.” Christian Century 127.3 (2010): 45. Academic Search Premier. Web. 7 Nov. 2012.

Dark Shadows. Dir. Tim Burton. Perf. Johnny Depp, Eva Green, Michelle Pfeiffer. Warner Bros. Pictures. 2012. DVD.

“Giving some bite to the outsider dwelling in us all.” The Daily Telegraph (Australia). (March 19, 2012 Monday): 467 words. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 9 Nov. 2012.

“Hollywood’s Vampire Craze With Frank Elaridi.” YouTube. 6 Oct. 2011. mtchalln. Web. 18 Nov. 2012.

“Lover Awakened.” Photograph. Barnes and Noble. Web. 5 Nov. 2012. <http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lover-awakened-j-r-ward/1100173197?ean=9780451219367> 

McCormick, Patrick. “It’s In The Blood.” U.S. Catholic 75.12 (2010): 40-41. Academic Search Premier. Web. 7 Nov. 2012.

“Memorable Quotes for Underworld.” IMDB. 2012. IMDB.com, Inc. Web 5 Nov. 2012. <http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0320691/quotes>

Meyer, Stephenie. Twilight. New York: Little, Brown, and Company, 2005. Print.

“Priest.” Photograph. EW. Web. 9 Nov. 2012. <http://popwatch.ew.com/2011/05/16/priest-vampires-summer-movie-body-count/>

“Teen Vampire Fascination.” YouTube. 23 Nov. 2009. awakememphis. Web. 17 Nov. 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OwPQXvhNaU&feature=related>

“Teens’ Top Ten.”  YALSA. American Library Association. 2 March 2012. Web. 6 Nov. 2012.

<http://www.ala.org/yalsa/teens-top-ten>

Twilight. Dir. Catherine Hardwick. Perf. Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart. Summit, 2009. DVD.

“Twilight fans pack movie theaters for finale.” YouTube. 15 Nov. 2012. kmbctv. Web. 22 Nov. 2012.

“Twilight Movie Poster.” Photograph. Stephenie Meyer. Web. 5 Nov. 2012. <http://stepheniemeyer.com/twilight_movie.html>

“Underworld.” Photograph. FanPop. Web. 5 Nov. 2012.  <http://www.fanpop.com/spots/underworld/images/5287248/title/underworld-photo?ir=true>

“Vampire.” Box Office Mojo. 10 Nov. 2012. IMDB.com, Inc. Web. 9 Nov. 2012. <http://boxofficemojo.com/genres/chart/?id=vampire.htm> 

“Vampire Craze. Mov.” YouTube. 14 Sep. 2010. Web. 18 Nov. 2012.  <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fCiRz7p1azo> 

 

“Vampire Diaries extra DVD #2 “When Vampires Don’t Suck” parte1, The.” YouTube. 16 Nov. 2011. TheFurymuser. Web. 4 Dec. 2012. 

“Vampire Diaries extra DVD #2 “When Vampires Don’t Suck” parte2, The.” YouTube. 16 Nov. 2011. TheFurymuser. Web. 4 Dec. 2012.

Vampire Diaries: The Third Season, The. Writ. Nick Wauters, Julie Plec, Carolin Dries. Dir. J. Miller Tobin. Warner Bros., 2012. DVD.

“Vampires! The Psychology, Science, and Impact of a Literary Monster.” YouTube.  22 Oct 2010. washingtonstateuniv. Web. 18 Nov. 2012. 

“Vampires in Pop Culture.” YouTube. 24 August 2009. CBS. Web. 5 Nov. 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMZQkBjyknk>

“Vampires taking big bite out of box office.” Hobart Mercury (Australia). (October 27, 2009 Tuesday): 792 words. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 8 Nov. 2012

Conclusion

Vampires from the past decade are more like humans than ever before, in both appearance and character. They possess everything we desire and lust after while at the same time embodying some of our deepest insecurities. Vampires have become complex characters, with individual personalities and problems, and are no longer terrifying monsters. Redefining every aspect of the vampire myth has made vampires relatable and sympathetic.

Different people interpret the meaning behind vampires in popular media in different way. Although I sometimes think that people read too much into the characters and stories, I can see where each theory that I've come across has some point of validity. At the end of the day, whether or not a story resonates with the audience comes down to the type of connections an audience member can form with the characters and the story being told. There's no definitive answer to what vampires symbolize because for each person it's different and potentially multi-faceted. Where one person sees an outsider longing for acceptance, another might see parallels with terrorists and their ability to blend into society seamlessly. It all depends on each person's viewpoint. 

When Vampires Don't Suck

I was rewatching The Vampire Diaries Season 1 on DVD, when I came across this featurette in the special features.

Grading

When I'm graded for this project, I hope to receive good marks because I've followed all the given requirements for a blog as best as I could, without being provided with an example of a previous blog that received high marks. I've put quite a bit of work into making my blog visually appealing, as well as providing a variety of information and sources.

An Interesting Psychological Viewpoint

This video has an interesting viewpoint about the meaning behind vampires.

What Does It All Mean?

There are a few different theories about what vampires symbolize for society. As a fan myself, I have my own thoughts, but I'll save those for the end.

 In an article in the December 2010 issue of U.S. Catholic, Patrick McCormick draws parallels between the vampires of True Blood and Daybreakers and issues in society today. According to McCormick, the vampires in True Blood represent the "perceived threats posed to traditional values and homeland security by same-sex marriage and illegal aliens," [McCormick, 41], while the unsustainable consumption of their food source in Daybreakers is a reference to mankind's consumption of global resources.  In Rodney Clapp's article "Vampires among us" he compares vampires with terrorists, seemingly normal people living among us with malevolent intent. Jeffrey Weinstock argues that it would much more accurate to say that vampires represent more than just "the metaphorical embodiment of sexual desire, capitalist exploitation, viral contagion, or virulent xenophobia," [Weinstock, 5], but rather a combination of all of them. 

I agree with Weinstock myself. Trying to fit the role vampires play in terms of the psychological representation they provide for society into just one small classification is just inaccurate. Each individual associates vampires differently in their mind, not to mention what they associate each different vampire character with. Vampire symbolism has become much more complex as vampires have moved beyond 2-dimensional monster stereotypes and into the realm of individual characters.

Midnight Hysteria

Here's a news clip from Kansas City covering the midnight opening of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 that came out earlier this month. They talk to some of the fans who have been camped out in line hours before the initial screening of the movie.

Fan Sites

Here is a list of links for some fan sites for some of the movies and television shows I've mentioned throughout my blog. These fan sites are an example of the level of dedication fans feel for the characters. These sites feature any tidbit of information relating to the actors, characters, or authors involved with the movie or television show.

Twilight Fan Sites

• twilighters.org
• bellaandedward.com
• twilightlexicon.com
• twilightersanonymous.com

Vampire Diaries Fan Sites

• vampire-diaries.net
• thevampirediariesfansite.net
• the-vampirediaries.com

True Blood Fan Sites

• true-blood.net 
• truebloodfan.org
•  trueblood-online.com

Another Short Video

Teenage Market

Teenagers provide a large market for vampire media. any bookstore you walk into will have a section for vampire books in the YA area and movies and shows such as Twilight and The Vampire Diaries, are marketed for teens and young adults. Especially after the release of Twilight, vampire novels for young adults flooded the market and, along with other paranormal fiction, still dominate that market today.  I was 15 when Twilight came out and especially once the movie adaptation was released, it seemed like every YA novel released was about vampires or angels or werewolves.

Teen Vampire Fascination

What I like about this video is that it gives a breakdown of what attracts teenagers to books like Twilight. I do find the idea that parents can really control what their kids are reading, especially when these books are available at the school or local public library, as a bit naive.

Transformation

Another development in the vampire canon has been the issue of being turned into a vampire. Each movie, book, or television show has a different approach. In the Tim Burton film Dark Shadows, all that's required is a bite from a vampire to trigger the transformation. The Vampire Diaries gets a little more involved: a human must die with vampire blood in their system to return as a vampire. In Twilight vampires are venomous and once their venom enters a human's blood stream, 3 days of excruciating pain ensue before the new vampire is "born." In Dark Lover, the first book in the adult paranormal romance series The Black Dagger Brotherhood, we learn that vampires are a separate race and that one is born a vampire rather than being turned into one. In the Underworld universe, vampires can be born or turned. This is just another area of the vampire myth that has been overhauled in the past decade.

Choices

Vampires in pop culture today are not inherently evil. Like humans they can choose their own path. This is prominently seen in vampire romance novels, as discussed in an article by Helen T. Bailie. She references many adult romance novels that portray vampires not as soulless demons created by the devil, but as individuals making their own choices."The evil vampire makes a deliberate choice to embrace his darker nature, while the vampire hero not only struggles against the temptation but will sacrifice himself rather than succumb to it." [Bailie, 143] This allows the vampire to be a hero or a villain, lending the vampire a level of complexity not achieved by the stereotypical vampire of previous decades, and people can easily relate to that internal struggle. Vampires have become more human than monster, with vampirism being viewed and treated more as an addiction or disease.

Everyone Has a Weakness

No longer do traditional means of vampire slaying apply. More often in popular media the stereotypical vampire repellants (i.e. garlic, holy water, crucifixes) have no effect. Many other stereotypes are also discarded, including the absence of a reflection and even the inability to go out in sunlight. The characters in Amelia Atwater-Rhodes' Den of Shadows series can go out in the sunlight and can even go inside churches with no negative side-effects. The vampires on The Vampire Diaries can go out in the sunlight with magically spelled daylight rings. They have reflections and are unaffected by garlic or holy water. However, a wooden stake to the heart, removal of the heart or head, and sunlight when not wearing a daylight ring are all fatal. Also, vampires are severely injured and impaired by an herb called vervain. If a person has vervain in their system or has it on them ( inside of a locket for example), they are safe from a vampire's compulsion. In the book/movie Twilight, vampires have no weakness, save being torn apart by another vampire or werewolf and then the pieces being burned. These changes to the vampire myth have allowed the modern vampire characters to further blend into society.

An Interview with Kat Graham

An interview with Kat Graham of the CW television show The Vampire Diaries.

Mind Games

Everyone knows that vampires have super strength and super speed. In pretty much any vampire story, that's a given. Today's vampires also often possess some sort of mind powers, such as mind control or reading people's thoughts. As per usual, examples follow.

In a series of young adult books by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes, called the Den of Shadows, vampires have a few interesting supernatural abilities, apart from their strength and speed. This series is interesting because vampires possess the ability to dematerialize, change their form (i.e. become any animal at will), and employ glamours, all of which are demonstrated in the first book of the series In the Forest of the Night. Also, vampires can communicate telepathically and can trap people in their gazes, making them unaware of the world around them. All of this makes them dangerous predators that can come and go, undetected. 

In the pilot episode of The Vampire Diaries, Damon reveals his ability to control fog and a crow. Throughout the first few episodes we become acquainted with compulsion, where a vampire can compel a human to forget, say, or do anything he wants them to. Damon is also able to summon Caroline to him because he had previously formed a  strong mental connection with her through drinking her blood and heavily influencing her mind. It is explained that drinking human blood is necessary for making these powers work correctly and thus Stefan is unable to use compulsion 100% effectively. 

In Twilight some vampires possess special abilities, some physical and some mental. Among the Cullen family Edward can read minds, Alice can see the future, Jasper can control emotions, and Bella has the ability to shield her mind and anyone else's she chooses from other mental abilities. In Breaking Dawn we meet a character with the ability to control the elements and another who can channel an electric current through their skin. 

Box Office Standings

At Box Office Mojo, an affiliate of IMDB.com, you can see how all the vampire movies since 1978 have done at the box office. 20 of the top 25 grossing vampire films have been released since 2000. 

 A screenshot of the top 15 grossing vampire movies on BoxOfficeMojo.com.

Tall, Dark, and Handsome

Vampires in popular media today are far from terrifying monsters. There are still monster vampires in films and literature. The movie Priest, which came out in 2011 is one such movie but according to Flixster it got a 16% rating by Rotten Tomatoes and 42% from users. The vampire characters that gain the most popularity look like they belong on the cover of a magazine rather than in our worst nightmares. According to an article by Bernard Beck, this deviation from horrifying monster to sexy immortal began with Bella Lugosi's portrayal of the title character in the movie Dracula in 1931. His Dracula was "...richly dressed, impeccably groomed, and mellifluously spoken. In his mysterious, dramatic black cape, he offered a dashing, handsome, though eerie figure." Today's vampires look just like humans, albeit very beautiful, alluring humans. Even when they're "vamped out" they still don't look terribly horrifying. 
 

A vampire from the movie Priest.  

[Photo URL: http://popwatch.ew.com/2011/05/16/priest-vampires-summer-movie-body-count/] 

 

Damon from The Vampire Diaries.

[Photo URL: http://tvrecappersanonymous.wordpress.com/2010/12/28/battle-of-the-vampires-damon-salvatore-the-vampire-diaries-versus-eric-northman-true-blood/] 
 

Selene from Underworld.

[Photo URL: http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/underworld/images/17834489/title/underworld-photo] 

Eric from True Blood.

[Photo URL: http://tvrecappersanonymous.wordpress.com/2010/12/28/battle-of-the-vampires-damon-salvatore-the-vampire-diaries-versus-eric-northman-true-blood/] 

In the 3 pictures above you can see that when the characters "vamp out" they pretty much just grow fangs and, in the case of Vampire Diaries and Underworld, their eyes change. In The Vampire Diaries blood rushes to their eyes and in Underworld the color of the vampires' eyes becomes very vibrant. The vampires in Twilight don't change at all, not even growing a set of fangs. On the other hand, the vampires from the movie Priest, seen in the top picture, don't resemble humans at all.

Ye of Little Faith

In October of 2009 an article published in an Australian newspaper questioned whether the vampire craze would be able to maintain its popularity or if it would burn out like so many other fads, citing the short-lived onslaught of penguin movies as an example. At the time the article was written both The Twilight Saga: New Moon and Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant were set to hit the big screen. Three years later vampires are still a prevalent part of mainstream media with the blockbuster releases of Dark Shadows, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Breaking Dawn Part II, and Underworld: Awakening this year alone. Not to mention the continued presence of television shows such as True Blood  and The Vampire Diaries or books, mainly romance novels for both adults and young adults and teens, such as The Black Dagger Brotherhood series and the Morganville Vampires YA series.When you step into a bookstore you often see a display set up (usually in the YA section) devoted to vampire books.

They Aren't Pretty

While researching different news articles to use for this project, I came across an article written about Guillermo Del Toro and a TV pitch he made a few years ago. It was a dystopian vampire story, and the vampires weren't sympathetic, pretty hero types. When the TV execs suggested turning it into a comedy he left. From there he decided to turn this idea into a book trilogy, the first one called The Strain, released in 2009. By now, all 3 books have been published and on Barnes and Noble the books have earned 4 stars, yet until now I had never heard of these books. I think it's really unfortunate that the television show never happened because I personally think it would have been a refreshing change from sparkling, hunky vamps.This is just another example of how the latter characters are what is the popular, in demand version of vampires today, whereas a more classic incarnation just wouldn't sell, at least back in 2009.