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Here lately, vampires have been popular in movies and books. Many of which are changing the image vampires have created. I mean, sparkling in the sun? Really? What are your thoughts on the media's perspective on vampires today?

I call it sympathy for the devil. Everything usually evolves at some point and that goes for vampires. It gives the reader or watcher something new, something fresh to work with. I think some things written aren't too far off, but when you have a "veil" in place for so long, anything different about the vampire will seem foreign, esp a sparkly daytime vampire.

30 Days of Night a comic book miniseries isn't sparkly, nor has the underworld series, it is in fact more darker then even the old tales. It really depends on the perspective you are looking at, I suggest you ignore things such as the sparkly twilight vamps and etc. there are better things out there to read or see. I fail to see that one book series has really done that much to affect the attitude towards the myth. sure there are a bunch of lame teenagers wanting a tortured byronic hero vampire with diamonds skin but that is only one thing.

I feel that since most feel that vampires are fictional to begin with,there is no limit to what one can attribute to them as far as characteristics,where they originate or their abilities.
With the advent of great CG and other things ,a writer has no limits and since so much has been done before, any writer or storyteller worth their salt is going to come up with new ideas that fit better with the times, in order to make a story interesting or to lend new twists to the existing legends.

ANYTHING to make the vampire more (sparkly)attractive to the listener or reader in order to sell more books or movies.

(1) I cant go get some fast food for myself. (2) I unintentionally overdose on toxic fumes from sunscreen when I need to travel. (3) I cant go to a university to learn. (4) Touch screens rarely work when I need them.

I call it commercialism! Today subjects considered taboo like Paganism, witchcraft and vampirism are the new"cool" things to be considered into. Many brings these topics up to friends and family members to sound educated or "different" as a way for these people to ohh and ahh over. Point blank, its about money, if money wasn't involved these topics would still be underground.

Problem is DivineAngel is that so many make the claim of being a vampire,and being so different from one another ..that, along with the fact that there is no difinitive proof of what makes a vampire,there is no way to say what is wrong or right when it coms to what vampires are.
So if one claims they are a vampire and they sparkle in the sun,then whos to say that they are wrong?

Because to them,thats what a vampire is.

If someone claims to be a vamp. Then let them be one. As for tv and the movies. Who is right or wrong on the issue. The person claiming to be a vamp or the person saying vampyres don't live in todays life.

I don't blame the media, they wouldn't know about how vampires REALLY are, since I don't think most have met real ones. All the myths and facts that go around today about them confuse the hell out of them possibly, and sometimes us. Though I don't stand for the creator of Twilight with the vampires in it, sparkling.. really!? Come on. I love Anne Rice's interpretation of vampires.. they burn in the sun, at times are crazy feeders, and so much more. I don't like Twilight just cause of the sparkling, storyline, and characters.. to mushy for me! And also, not based on how they are! But that's the creators mind, and as I say.. what they creator thinks, the creator writes.

Wonderfully put, Oceanne. A usual, your views largely mirror my own.

To my view, the greatest damage done to the vampire has not been caused by fictional portrayals in the Media... but, instead, by those claiming to be (f)actual vampires based on such fictions. At least with books and movies, we know up front that they are represented accurately as ... Fiction!

However with current-day "vampire" communities, we have entire sub-cultures now claiming to be actual vampires by deliberately twisting fiction around and presenting it to the world under the disingenuous guise of being...fact! Textbook example, if not the epitome, of self-delusion. And with that self-delusion comes the inevitable blind defense of such again any facts that are contrary to it. Thus, the truth is ignored...even reviled...should it "dare" challenge that delusion.

This is the danger far greater than any Media portrayal of the vampire.

As usual Upir and Oceanne have said a mouthful.

Very well thought out and stated information, showing a true understanding of the history involved.

BRAVO!!

I agree with Oceanne on the point that now those who claim to be vampires can be anything they so choose. Almost anyone will accept it so it doesn't matter.

I don't really care what today's society is doing. Let them sparkle, let them be gay, at least we can have perspectives. Vampire? The definition of it is more than anything written or available out.
I don't care the masquerades, for it shields greater knowledge.

The real issue is that people actual believe what they see and hear. They have no desire to understand the history and go with what ever is said on blind faith. It's what's known as group think. The current VR aid banner is a perfect example of this.
The new Tim Burton film will undoubtedly have people believing that our 16th President was an axe welding ninja, hell bent on revenging the death of his mother at the hands of vampires.
Abraham Lincoln lived with his mother and father until she died of tremetol, a common illness from milk poisoning.




Give it 10 years and I'm sure a fresh crop of teens will swear their lives by the amount of truth found within this film.

The matter comes down to what is offered by others who claim a different definition of vampire is, so unless a persons definition is ready to be offered for review they really have no biz telling others that they are "wrong" to adopt another popular definition.

Excellent points, Severus and dabbler!

Both if your comments zero in on perhaps the two greatest problems Human societies of any Age have struggled with: the perpetuation of ignorance resulting from "group think" and the pride and vain-glory such ignorance inevitably engenders.

Were we as a species more motivated to seeking truth on our own rather than forever seeking approval from others instead, we would have long ago overcome both of these barriers to progress.

It's the same with anything fictitious, it's subject to the whims and visions of the author portraying it. For example, some portray vampires to be bloodthirsty hellspawns that simply live to kill and gorge themselves with the blood of their victims while others such as Bram Stoker have portrayed the vampire as a predatory but rather romantic ageless being that lives off the blood of those they sire. What society has done is offer different ideas of what a vampire should be, in shorter terms.

Lets not forget the GRAPHICS! In todays world,graphics can really do a vampire justice .We can have them morph and breed into anything we want them to be.
Its awesome really!

I believe that if our existence were to be known that the human society would fall apart. They think that they are top of the food chain and that they are safe in this world knowing that but in reality it isn't natural to ignore the so called "unnatural". I remember the time's where we could walk around freely as ourselves and humans didn't rule Earth. We lived together peacefully. Now society makes up look like monsters just because we need blood or, in case of the psi vampires, chei. (chei is energy that the living gives off without it you are just a hunk of meat.) So what do we do? We cower and hide because we fear of what humans think. In my younger years I lived in Egypt and humans worshiped our kind. What happened to that?

Nothing happened to that.And the reason why, is that while someone might be a vampire,they are still human first and foremost.Truth is,if you study vampire history,you will find that vampires arent about blood.And it isnt about needing chi to survive either.Humans do not need blood or anothers chi to survive.And neither do Vampires.In fact,too much will make them sick just as it will humans.
Why? Because Vampires ARE human.
The reality of it is,the world will not fall apart if the existance of vampires is "revealed",because if they were on top of the food chain,they wouldnt be hiding at all.In fact,vampires have already revealed theirselves..VR is a great example of that.And I dont know of one here who has been "hunted" because of their declarations.
Todays society has set the vampire free.Free to be whatever they want.

When I hear peeps talk like that,Im sorry,but it makes me think of the whole bs with hitler and his belief that the Aryian was the top race.L OL And he wasnt even an Aryian!

We as a society have made Vampires into many different things.During this time in mankind's histiory ,more than ever,we welcome and WANT something that is above and beyond what we are.Even if it is an undead corpse.And as far as I know,Vampires have never existed "peacfully" .VR is a good example of that too.How can there be peace when everyone is in debate as to what a vampire is or isnt.
We have beautified something that started off as "damned""Ugly" and a parisite.No, it wasnt back then,but is so attractive in today's world that everyone wants to be one.And the story behind their version is always one that caters to their wants and beliefs personally.
And thats ok.

I just get tired of the foolishness.

"I'm a 300 year old vampire and you all should be worshiping me!"

I understand..and so do a lot of us here Zom.Especially when they have done their homework and find something completely different than what was formerly believed.Yet no one wants to hear it.
Theres nothing wrong with fantasy,and yes,I do feel that we have things in common with certain "otherkin" creatures,whether it be physical or mental, a mermaid or werewolf...but in the end,we are what we are.HUMAN.

Vampires are not supernatural beings who are above the standard population even though our society has made them such ,with our stories and imaginations.

There's a good question...Have our imaginations finally gone too far?

Oh,I dont think so at all.Im one of those who feel a healthy imagination is good for us.Thing is,knowing whats imagined and what isnt.

In today's world,we can be anything we want and the world will accept us.Or at least,tolerate us.In some cases,even glorify.And if there really were a creature who was powerful, and who could do some of,or even one of the things that vamps are reported to do,then people would love it! The days of lynch mobs and witch hunts are gone .People today are ready for something bigger and better,and if it were here it would be embraced.Look at how many peeps want aliens to come...

Healthy imagination is necessary. I'm talking about wild, unsupported statements meant to be accepted as facts.

When an unhealthy imagination leads others to more wild, unsupported statements.

I think that many people in today's world don't really hold any significant appreciation for the fact that there is a dark and unnatural side in life and that what some believe is only make believe and fantasy have no idea of the unnatural and mystic beings that can and do exist quoting one of my poems to believe in the unbelievable is to open your mind and your soul to the wonder and grace that you have now welcomed into your world my point is just because nothing extraordinary has not happened to you yet does not mean that the future will be the same as the past.

First, I really like what lamidea and Severus had to say.

My own two cents is that it is just generally a dull world we live in these days and it takes effort to 'see past or through' it. The 'cheap and easy' way to do that is to fall into the fantasy of a sparkly vampire world and be rescued from our drab existence or alternatively thrill to the unrestrained violence of a war between werewolves and vampires.

As I noted in another thread about the supposed 'zombie Apocalypse' that was upon us just a few days weeks ago, the media and 'we' thrill to anything that takes us out of the humdrum 9-5, live for the weekend existence most people deal with as a matter of course.

This is but one of many possible responses to this post, Which would touch on cultural changes and a female base audience. As I said, one possible observation of man others.

It is observed that some females of a vast age group, not just teenagers, fancy the persona of modern day vampire characters.

Female individuals have told me that they like the romanticized vampires who would love them, protect them and cherish them no unto death. I have heard many stated claims by females, that some of these vampires are “chivalrous” and romantic

I have even met two women one in her 30’s the other in her 40’s whom told me, each in their own way, that after reading the Twilight Saga, “their husband paled to compare to the alleged sought after characteristics of a romantic and protective, vampire”

This of course, is but one observation of the posted question. An observation which has solely touched on a female market correlated with a cultural change.

. The case being that the image of the vampire changed in the 19th century. Needless to say, Anne Rice added to this dynamic in a time period where there was “fertile ground,” and media and communication opportunities to expand on the romantic vampire.

Albeit, with a market for these themes, it is unlikely that Hollywood, and the entertainment business at large, would miss out on the great potential for profit.

Oh this will probably be deleted(again) but what the hell. Hollywood has long been used to capture the hearts and minds and alter opinions.
So where do I come into this? I got fed up with being manipulated and decided to do some manipulation of my own.
I called it the 6 degrees , some of you maybe familiar with it ?
Others like me, stephen fry etc have recognized their potential....sherlock holmes is more than just a film as is V.
Anyway, I went one step further. Who else is listening?

Some call me a vampire because of the Crows outside my house, others think I am mad. I ignore them all because when I am sure I am right it isn't me who decides...so don't shoot the messenger. Tickerty tock, time runs down. Anyway this quiet is just by chance, its just a game, right....I don't think so...

People have always had a fasination of vampires, ghosts, spirts etc and recently that interest has spiraled most due to a rash of popular films which started with the 'Vampire Chronicles' series, then the 'Twilight' series came along which re-sparked things off and i think that due to the huge success of that series with its diamond skinned vegan vampires and screaming teenagers that producers are now looking for anything with vampires in it and are trying to turn anything into a money spinner regardless of writing content, intergrity and simply good standards.

Yes, the money making potential is huge!

It has also been stated by many women that the Edward Cullen character is obsessive and possessive...not in a good way.

VxZOMBIExV, hi.

To be honest with you I have never seen the movie Twilight nor have read the series. I was very surprised at how these two ladies whom I know to be mature and dedicated individuals became sort of “obsessed” with the Twilight saga.

The reason that I use the word obsessed is due to certain changes which took place with both of them. Such as to stay up very late to read these sagas.

So, truly as stated on my post I just touched on one point of many possible ones, related to the post. The case being that this particular fictional work has become a “gold mine.”

I have also met may others who truly like this particular series. As for me, I have neither seen it, nor read it. So, I have no opinion.

But is very interesting to know that you have heard opposite opinions from ladies. Thank you for sharing.

MoonlightSavage,

I think that you make a very good point. Yes, if this or anything actually, did not make money it would not dominate mainstream entertainment.

Whether those who are taken by these fictional films and shows are just “running with a trend “or not, it does not take away the fact that so far it has proven to be a money maker.

Well (and no offense meant) as far as the 2 ladies you speak of...it says alot to me about the kind of wives they are. I mean, to compare their living, breathing husbands to a fictional character.

I mean, if they're going to do that, there are much better fictional characters to compare their husbands to. Say for instance...Superman.

It would be equal to a man comparing his wife to Wonder Woman. It's just foolishness and it's VERY shallow.

I've even heard of girls giving their boyfriends copies of Twilight as a teaching tool on how to be a better boyfriend.

I would tell those young men to give those girls a copy of Penthouse magazine and say, "Here, maybe this will help you be a better girlfriend."

i feel that these soft vampire that are portrayed in twilight and other such works are distasteful.did i watch the twilight movies?yes.did they hold my interest and even entertain me?yes.
but you can not look at them at reliable resources as to how we behave and what our separate needs are.
so,no,i do not favor the portrayal.

Writers have romanitsized vampires to the point where the majority seem to be wussies. damaged goods, sad and tortured souls looking for love...blah blah blah...what happened to vlad and the others blood thirsty and heartless....vampires SPARKLE now really come on! bela lugosi would roll over in his grave

Of course, jekyll...after all, we all know Bela Lugosi and Vlad the Impaler were real vampires, right? Certainly not influenced at all by Western Media portrayals.

They have butchered them.. they make them sparkle, made them into something that is as far from the truth a as purple pokadoted yellow flying pigs

Only on a superficial level has the vampire image been altered; different people have different interpretations of the creature, and the race is on to create the most attractive and popular idea of a vampire. For those who wish to know true vampirism however, I feel that nothing has really changed at all. We are what we are and always have been.

Actually, RavenEyes, your post reveals one of the most pervasive yet apparently near-transparent ways in which today's society has unfortunately been quite successful at completely undermining and altering who and what the Vampire was/is: To be a Vampire, you must first be... dead.

Thus, if you have not actually died and risen from the grave (as per all accounts from the early 1700s on) neither you nor anyone else cannot be a Vampire.

And yet we have a burgeoning subculture out there of quite-mortal Humans claiming to be post-18th Century versions of the "Vampire" (?!).

That, in my view, is one of the truly ridiculous examples of what today's society has done.

Well, one thing that society, ie the media - has done to the vampire was create a lot of ignorant and/or self-deluded people who think they know what/how a vampire should be, with very little knowledge outside of movies and television.
They gather up what they have floating about in their heads, and are now authorities on the subject. At the very least, they go on and on about what a vampire should be, while getting riled up about it. Sane people know that it's all fiction...and as fiction, a vampire can be whatever the hell the writer/creator choses it to be.

And by the way - I don't care for the sparkles either. Am I having a holy war over them? No. Some of my fictional vampires walk about in the day AND eat food. And some are drunks.
Fiction AND freedom of expression, you know...

Now Upir you already know that you and I see eye to eye on the history, but I must warn you about the sharing of that wisdom.

See I tried to point out the same thing in a different thread. I talked about the facts of what real vampirism is verses what it has become. I pointed out the historical facts behind the legends and was chastised for bulling someone else's opinion. In short if some one wants to believe that vampires sparkle because that's what they saw in a movie or book then you have to succumb to the "everyone is entitled to their opinion" card or face being labeled a bully. Facts and historical perspective no longer hold any weight.

Which in a strange twist of fate is itself a reflection of what media and political correctness has done to not just vampirism but society as a whole.

I find that I take the perception of Vampire as my own perception. Why should I follow a crowd. So believe what you believe and not what you see and are told to believe.

Okay...so maybe 'sparkling' was taking things a bit to far, but I think maybe that was just the author's way of trying to distance her 'vampires' from well...regular people. Her vampires were a bit to 'human', you know, besides the super strength and all that, and I believe she was looking for a unique way to set them aside not only from her other human characters, but from the other vampire characters in books and movies and what not. She was just putting her own spin on things. Granted, when someone thinks of a vampire they don't usually think of rhine stones glittering in the sun and all that, but heh, that'll probably change from here on out right?
I think that vampires from legend, and vampires from modern day movies and books are two seperate entities now. Each author will adapt and change a 'creature' to fit his or her own story. So I think it would be unrealistic to expect the vampire to remain a rotting piece of meat covered in grave dirt, creeping into unlatched windows at night. Now the vampire vow series, it's pretty good as far as up to date vampire books go. Yeah the vampires are supposed to be unnaturally good looking and what not, but they're not all volvos and weddings. There's a certain element of the macabre that the author manages to instill into his work. The vampires still sleep in tombs or grave sites/coffins during the day. They crave blood and murder/take from people without regard to who or what they were. They're monstrous heretics. So I think there's a 'middle ground' that authors can reach. Sure, go ahead and make your vampires more...human in appearance, more appealing, but the savage brutal nature shouldn't be discarded with the ghoulish appearance. Because afterall, if your vampire isn't a menacing creature of the night...is it really a vampire?
[Besides, I rather like the idea that a vampire can't go out in the sun without burning up, as opposed to the only real threat of sunlight being that he'd sparkle like a diamond.]

I think todays society is treating vampires like it did disco in the 70's. It was hot for awhile but it'll die out. At least the movies will.

Cheapened them....turned them into a "blue-light" special.

They wanted more kids to read so they ended up taking the scary and blood sucking demon and turning it into every tween girl's fantasy. I guess it could be considered refreshing to see new perspectives on it but at the same time, out of all the more well off, mature, and knowledgeable people, why would a 1000+ year old vampire choose to date someone barely past puberty? Makes no sense to me. *shrugs*

I'm with Omega and others who think (perhaps hope!) that the 'fad' will die out soon enough and then it'll be left to those of us who appreciate the darker aspects of the vampire.

What Justin said! Lets get back to the traditional dark horror that Vampire Lore is meant to be!

You still gotta' admit that a lot of the old school 'dark horror' vampires were still sexy...lol.
As someone once said - a female writer whose name escapes me at the moment - like Lord Byron, vampires are "Mad, bad, and dangerous to know."

Honey, ANYTHING you can come up with has had more "bad assery" than Twilight. The TELETUBBIES are more bad ass than Twilight.

"For those who wish to know true vampirism however, I feel that nothing has really changed at all. We are what we are and always have been."


I feel that people want everyone to believe in vampires and their powers SO badly,that they will try any approach to accomplish that.All the while still claiming they are real. It is ironic to keep claiming something yet refuse to offer anything beyond that.

(This excludes you Upir, due to your research and evidences )

And yet they are real,in a mental sense.

Todays society has turned the vampire into an "escape" for anyone who has no pleasure or desire for the everyday humdrum that so many experience these days...day in,day out.

And some,live true to the lifestyle,so in heart,thats what they are..at least to thier own perception of the vampire.

I will fair warn all of you that I will not be as eloquent with this.

General thoughts:
First: At one point in time vampire were not romantic at all, they were demons and they were not pretty..decaying flesh etc etc.
Authors in the 19th and 20 century made them the dark creatures with a sexy side that we think of,
Second: The defining of Vampire. In the beginning of the Legends which go back for centuries. To be a vampire you must be walking dead.
Third: It is my personal feeling that perhaps the people that feed on Energy or Blood, truly feel that it is needed. We are not having the same life experience, we do not know.
Fourth: I believe you can be immortal, not in the sense that your body lives forever, but with the thinking that your soul can be recycled and you are reborn, Hence making you immortal.
Just my opinion.

Well Oceanne your in luck, I happen to be a vampire expert. lol

Seriously though, some of us do work within the scientific community to provide that proof. Some of us prefer to work on the ground floor instead of going for our own personal cult following or some book deal. Just because we don't go around pounding our chest in an ape like display of ego doesn't mean we aren't doing the work. Ladyshyla and myself have worked with a lot of people and are currently in a long term study with researcher, author, and real life vampire expert John Edger Browning.

If you want to see some of his work to date you can Google him.

He lived in New Orleans for a very long time studying the vampire sub culture there. He actually moved from New Orleans to Buffalo because the contacts he made there suggested he speak to us for his next project. He has been shadowing us documenting his finding with the University of Buffalo for over a year now.

The simple fact is that there is a lot of history and lore, facts and fiction that has to be gone threw tested and retested before the truth rises to the top.
But that truth is out there!!

I think thats excellent Sev! It about time someone else besides Upir buckled down to see just whats behind it all.I am anxious to read what comes out of it..Im sure you will let us know? I think it would eliminate a lot of debate and hard feelings, if some type of finding was made that is tangible.

Please keep us posted.

I agree, oceanne! Sev and I touched upon this topic briefly last night. I'm going to google this guy! I'm curious as to his approach.

We are woking with a lot of different people in the hopes of making what we know to be true, into a set of facts that can be measured. I do think that part of the problem with doing this type of research is that the means of testing for hard line facts doesn't exist in the first place.
How does one test something if there is not test to give.
There are a lot of really smart people working on this problem and that's what we are doing... we are attempting to find the proper tests through trial and error. These studies take time but the work will be worth it in the end.
I will of course share the results and findings when they are completed.

I don't believe it is merely today's society that has "done" anything to vampires. Centuries of romanticizing the vampire has developed into the popular vampire today- the sweet, intense and protective spirit that is secretly struggling with his inner demons because he wants to conform to society's unspoken laws. The vampire used to be something to be feared - Vlad the Impaler anyone?- but now is something to be coveted and brought down to a teen, disney-like level.
That being said, the only thing being affected by today's society is the image of the vampire- not the actual vampire.
Vampires do not change with society's expectation, they adapt to their surroundings but can any one of you say you have conformed?

the myths of vampires have changed since the days of old. movies have made the vampires sex objects and full of emotions, yet the ways and powers of the myth have changed. I think society or vampire culture has changed to fit the needs of the future and ever changing progress.

Folklore vampires were skinny, undead monsters who only rose at night to feed....and could be beaten by spilling grains on the floor due to their intense ocd. Sunlight was not a weakness but they were only active at night.

Then came the books like Dracula that made vampires have immense powers and were besides the fangs and other oddities, human in appearance.

Then came the movies which changed the powers and weaknesses. The 80 and early 90s was a good time for vampires as fright night, lost boys and Bram stoker's Dracula were around then.

Today's vampires are significantly nerfed and weakened. Instead of being supernatural monsters with powers over the elements, they are instead just emos or angst filled people who have just enhanced physical attributes. Though some vampires have been seen as enjoying their condition and not being angst or emo, they are still watered down compared to early depictions.
So I say today's society has humanized, sexualized and weakened vampires. Werewolves are victims to it as well in some media. None it matters though since what fiction does with its content is up to its creator, not everyone has to like it but that's life.

Pop culture made them cute and attractive when a vampire is not.

Allowed for the possiblity to embrace vampyres on a superficial level

If vampires really did exsist and they was able to offer eternal life, there would be queue around the block, i say let people have there beliefs who knows perhaps they do exsist in some cultures.

Its a two way 3 edged sword no matter which way you look at it some support others are against it then you have those who dont really care about it that much as they look at it doesnt define them.