With novels, movies and television shows such as "Twilight," "True Blood" and "The Vampire Diaries," the seduction of the vampire world is growing. People are becoming more and more obsessed with these fantastical creatures. Instead of being seen as monsters, they have become the dark, brooding, sexy desires of female affection. But when did these vampires myths originate?
Vampire myths and folklore stretch across cultures. Early myths developed in countries such as China with tales of people rising from the dead. In Hebrew folklore, Adam's first wife, Lillith, was said to attack babies and drink their blood.
Though they have their roots in ancient culture, much of what we know about vampires comes from the European folklore. Elizabeth of Bathory, a noblewoman in the early 1600s, was the origin of many qualities of later vampiric myths. A countess of Hungary, she believed that virgin blood preserved her youth. Consequently, she murdered nearly 600 peasant girls in order to bathe in and drink their blood.
Bram Stoker, author of the well-known vampire novel "Dracula", combined many different legends, including that of Elizabeth Bathory, to create the title character Dracula. The name came from the Romanian prince known as Vlad Dracula. Though he never drank the blood of any of his victims, he still exhibited that bloodlust characterized by vampires. After staking several of his victims and watching as they died, he became known as Vlad the Impaler. Though today's vampires thrive on having that air of seduction and desirable sex appeal, they were not always viewed that way. The first vampire movie made was a German film featuring the monster Nosferatu. He was an unattractive character featuring hairy palms, bat-like ears and other monstrous characteristics. It was not until later in the century that vampires became the creatures we know today.
Vampires became increasingly popular in the '70s with the publication of Anne Rice's novel "Interview With a Vampire." Later in the '90s it was made into a movie starring Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise. These vampires took on more humanlike qualities distancing themselves from the grotesque figures in the folkloric past.
The modern vampire contains the same bloodlust and power over its victims as it did in the past, but now the focus has changed from a monster tale to a love story. Characters such as Edward Cullen and Bill Compton contain several qualities characterizing them as both a lover and a monster, seducing audiences deeper into the vampire myth.
Sources: History Channel documentary "Vampire Secrets," vampiresamongus.com
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