Vampirism

5 Pages 1312 Words

Vampirism: Then and Now

BY: Steven Crowe



When asked about vampires, most people would refer to many popularly known traits. Most of these include an extremely old Nobleman with fangs, slicked back hair, a cape, blood reliance, and a Transylvanian accent. Other well known vampire facts include being destroyed by the sun, garlic, crosses, holy water, and a stake to the heart. Though well known, most of these are false and were created through Literature and Cinema, and share hardly any common traits with either the vampires of archaic folklore nor the real vampires of today. The vampire is a popular yet misunderstood entity from archaic folklore and into the modern culture of today.
The initial origin of vampires is quite unclear and has varied widely. The vampire has appeared in the folklore of many different countries and various storytellers and writers have embellished some of the aspects of vampirism. “The vampire figure in folklore emerged as an answer to otherwise unsolvable problems within culture. The vampire was seen as the cause of certain unexplainable evils, accounted for the appearance of some extraordinary occurrences within the society, and was often cited as the end product of immoral behavior.” (Melton 504-505). The first documented encounters with vampirism occurred in Russia in 1047 where a Russian prince was referred to as “upir lichy” which means “Wicked Vampire”.
The characteristics of vampires in archaic folklore and of modern times differ greatly. In folklore, a vampire was nothing more than a reanimated corpse that feeds off of the living to sustain itself. It was believed that many things could cause one to become a vampire upon death. Practicing sorcery or witchcraft, eating sheep killed by a wolf, leading an immoral life, being a werewolf, dying by the hands of a vampire, having a black cat jump over your corpse, improper burial, unrevenged murder, death by drowning, born with...