Only the Strong Survive

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Recommended: The history of the vampire

American society of today tends to be short-sighted and trendy. It’s almost impossible to keep track of the current fads in fashion, movies, novels, and television these days because of how fast they stay popular. In my short lifetime, I’ve been subject to boy bands, the internet explosion, and several incredibly successful movie franchises. These would include Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean, and The Twilight Saga. They are all new series that have been written in the last fifteen years however they contain subjects that have been in stories and history for centuries. From it’s earliest entry into modern literature in 1819 with John Polidori’s “The Vampyre” to Charlaine Harris’ The Southern Vampire Mysteries: Dead Until Dark vampires have undergone a myriad of adaptations. I believe that the vampire genre is unique in its ability to adapt and stay relevant in media and therefore they are the ultimate “Darwinian Predator”. Through a careful examination of vampires in various forms of media I will show how this is possible.

Before Dracula and “The Vampyre”, vampires were trapped in myths of superstitious people never being wholly considered by mainstream society. Polidori introduced the world to Lord Ruthven, and Stoker introduced us to the infamous Count Dracula. This was a major step for the vampire genre because it created realistic characters that audiences could connect with and bridge the gap from myth to reality. These vampires were no longer whispered about or told to frighten little children they actually had a place in literature. Furthermore these two vampires were the prototype for the suave, articulate, and cultured vampires of today. “His peculiarities caused him to be invited to every house; all wished to se...

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... are very successful in doing so.

From Polidori’s 1819 short story “The Vampyre” to the latest in The Southern Vampire Mysteries series vampires have grown, adapted, and been molded by their writers to please their ever changing audiences. It is the vampire genre’s flexibility and ability to change that has allowed it to thrive in media for nearly two centuries.

Works Cited

King, Stephen. "StephenKing.com - 'Salem's Lot." Welcome to StephenKing.com. 1 Apr. 2005. Web. 01 Dec. 2011. .

Rice, Anne. Interview with the Vampire: a Novel. New York: Knopf, 1976. Print.

Stoker, Bram. Dracula. New York: Signet Classics, 2007. Print.

"The Vampyre - John Polidori." Books & Literature Classics. About.com. Web. 01 Dec. 2011. .

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