Vampire Allure!!

   From Bram Stoker’s Dracula till The Twilight, the ‘creators’ of the vampires have imagined them differently from era to era. However, the attraction of people to them has remained irreducible. Despite the fact that the undead had always been seen as evil creatures, some of their unchangeable characteristics, such as their eternal youth- and consequently their omnipotence-, their undistorted beauty and sensuality and their mysterious aura, have rendered them able to lure people to a great extent.  

    To begin with, it is important to mention that the lure to the vampires can be attributed to Hollywood portrayal of them as powerful, sexy, mysterious and immortal. I could argue that, if it was not for Hollywood’s influence, people would not have paid so much attention to the undead. Nevertheless, what really attracts human beings to them is their power of eternal youth. It is acknowledged that our society has a fetish about preserving youth, trying everything they can to cease the aging process, which is one of their weaknesses. Vampires, on the other hand, do not have to endeavor on this part and the main reason why they are admired is because ‘they depict the strengths and weaknesses of the living in the face of the threat posed by the undead’(Waller 12). Human beings have an enthusiastic passion for life and desire to accomplish many things during their lives. However, vampires own the privilege of omnipotence and therefore people fearing of death are magnetized by this feature as well.

    Another folkloric characteristic that has a strong effect on people is the vampire’s eerie beauty and sexuality. Vampires are passionate creatures. It is believed that they have finely attuned senses and place great value on aesthetic principles. This feature particularly attracts the female audience rather than the male. As Margaret Carter insightfully points out that when the repressed sexuality of the vampires emerges it is the male population that becomes ‘feminine as victims’ while the females ‘take on the stereotypical masculine trait of aggressive sexuality’ (Carter 1).  Among the strategies that the undead employ to lure their victims is their facial perfection. Women, especially, overlook the paleness of their skin and concentrate on their seductive countenance. There is the notion that they are most of the times noble and isolated men trying to escape or at least downplay their ’traditional folkloric traits of the vampire’, traits that make women sympathize with them, according to Margaret Carter, writer of an article on vampire’s sexuality(1). Most of the female population long to find a passionate male and what seems to be an  advantage for the vampires is the fact that they yearn for intimacy through their thirst for blood (Carter 1). They feel all senses and emotions ardently and they are considered to be very sexual creatures. Despite all this passion, however, there is the possibility that their sensuality is not so fervent after all as Gregory Waller highlights