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I currently reading a vampirebook named "Let the right one in" It is a swedish book. Anyway by reading that book it hitted me something. In the book it says vampires have 2 brains. The normal brain in the head but also a brain builded up with braincells in the heart. In the book it is the brain in the heart that control most of the vampire side and the action the person do as a vampire. The normal brain is still normal with human values about moral etc etc. I wonder what do you all think about this? It somehow make sence to me when think on the term put an pole thru a vampires heart. Maybe just to kill the brain that control it?

nope, i can not agree. person can have erection (emptiness) or attraction (charm to bring to the chest by way of canals) in the heart and the dire in the mouth but can not have brain to heart or limbs. even worms do not have its brain in the middle part of body.

Vampire's have no heart. They think with the brain that is within since they were born.. or off what they feed is to whatever my knowledge is.

Very interesting, Pantervamp. Whatever magic is at work to insure the vampire's return, it's total reanimation, may "revamp" the internal wiring of this creature.

What is more likely is that the heart and mind connection described in the book is a metaphor for the revenant's Soul which is in torment. The Heart represents the Human remnants of the vampire in constant spiritual struggle with its new murderous mentality.

Well stated Cherry Advocate every one wants to advance out into the fringe, as the fringe (fictional, and presented as non-fiction alike) get farther out then the farther-out.

One line summarizations in a topic like this, or practically any topic in our forum, which are almost all "far-fetched", only work if one takes a literal interpretation. It's easy to say, "it's all in your point of view," or the author's intent, but where is there room for discussion?

Any time we are involved with folklore, fiction or fantasy, something stands for something else. It comes out of our cultural fears and is projected onto the page.

The Heart/Mind struggle depicted in fictional vampire stories is paramount in Anne Rice, TWilight and even Dracula.

Destroying the brain of zombies dispenses with them.

Why is the "Heart" of the vampire so vital?

It is a good concept. The author may or may not have knowledge pertaining to the sacred heart of alchemical philosophy. If so, then speculation would have been to reiterate some for the sake of merit for the establishment of a good book.

Since the sacred heart of the voilet flame lay within the heart, this in turn would be deduced as a brain. Analogically speaking of course.

(*Wonders if "analogically" is a word...*)

Analogically is a word... just to clear that up....


But seriously, guy? Really? A brain in the heart? Do you even know how silly that sounds? Or is this just going way over my head? Somebody please tell me before I let loose on this one.

*Chuckles* We can always ask Bruce Campbell, after all he is known as the "man with two brains."

Seriously though, the author may make whatever notion they clearly want when it comes to the genome structure of the body. A new breed if you will. Happens all the time in Science Fiction. The wheel of evolution is always turning. White Wolf did it with the displaced heart, why not a brain next to the heart. Traditional Sci-fi at its finest.

TAKE THAT DARWIN!!

Soulshroude --- the alchemical heart thing sounds interesting. Where can I read more about it?

And guys, we're talking about reanimated corpses here. Lighten up.

Blood mother great post, would like too see more on this.

myth and fiction here, no need for the drama. its up to each view and everyone has an opinion.

Vampires brain in the heart nah, deformity i guess.

No drama, but analogically speaking no one ever argues about men having a brain in their penises. lmao. Why not the undead with a brain in their heart?

Talking myth or specualtion. Until recently in hollywood have we seen a dramatic change in vampires. with feelings and emotions before they were bloodlusting creatures.

so brain in the heart, would be like the night of living dead here, kill the brain and they die. yet the brain has never < that i know been accoicated with vampire. just the ideas of dreams of their life.

Staking them to the ground so they shall not rise was to puncture the heart for the blood travels through it. yet now we speculate the vampire heart actually pumps blood to the limbs.

One specualtion causes another.....

I've never heard of brain in the heart and I can't picture it. Even for myth it wouldn't make any sense to me.

When I think of men having a brain in their penises, I'm thinking figuratively. I know they don't have an extra one down there but it's fun to talk like they do.

If the corpse is just reanimated, it would still have all the same parts and functions that it did before just now, it's a vampire... So... what?... It just grew an extra brain into it's heart and viola! it's a vampire!?

Can we at least agree that vampires are evolving fictionally? Some are ravening monsters, but some are lovestruck teens. They used to cringe at the sight of the crucifix, never ingest booze, and they had to sleep in their coffin during the day with some of their native soil tucked away with them. Oh, and their hearts supposedly didn't beat.

Now they're nondenominational, bathe in holy water, watch soap operas during the day, drive cars and live in houses where they sleep with babes in bedrooms with glorious urban views.

Their "undeadness" is in question since they seem to have a circulatory system, which I think means a pulse. So maybe for some of them there's been a migration of brain cells.

Pantervamp, why don't you see if you can get the author of your book to make a guest appearance and settle this for us? Does the author have a website, hopefully in English?

That's a good point. I honestly don't know how the vampire myths and legend migrated from beast to present day vampires such as they did. It's a little unnerving. I've tried to fill in the gap there and keep coming up short. I would definitely love to have this author clear up his view on this though. Would probably make things a bit easier on all of us. *laughs*

The writer of the book is John Ajvide Lindqvist.

Link to what the book is about.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Let_the_Right_One_In

Link to info about John Ajvide Lindqvist.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ajvide_Lindqvist

The book is very good 1 of the best vampirebooks i have readed sofar.

fascinating! It's about kids and bullies. I so identify. If you go to Wikipedia, click down to the English interview with the writer. Interesting in terms of film adaptations, and the struggling writer who makes it big, but no info on the heart.

I dident finded anything about the heart part on the internet :S i will find it in the book and write it here. give me a few days :)

This is a trailer of the movie that is created from the book.

I believe that vampires do have both brains and hearts. I mean, once someone 'gets turned', as it were, would the brain or heart just pop out and run away?

No.

No ~Bloodmother~ we cannot agree that your fictional vampire is better then mine...

On your question regarding the alchemical brain/heart, this deals with the voilet flame of the heart, the higher self aspect. As according to alchemical tradition, the main theme here is to get the physical self coordinated with the higher self. Thus my invocation of the brain in the heart, relating it to the voilet flame since the higher self does think with the heart and not with the head itself. Easy enough...

Society that does not think with the heart or brain....Huh.
many are passionate as we see in fictional silver screens, and they must think to comprehend. The aspect of the inner thoughts that dwell and create thought.
So what would be such an aspect as said to elebrate more on this......

aren't most books based on what the author beliefs and values? No matter how Unbiased they claim to be.

somer are based on beliefs yet alot of it is the writing of fiction in characters and stories, with some of the beliefs placed in it to give it the act of factional accounts,

Got the book for my b'day!!! Good so far. Many characters and pov changes, like intersecting short stories all contriving to meet at the same axis.

Ok, question on the question, are we talking about 'real' vampires here, like psy and sangs? or are we talking about something more akin to a zombie in that its a reanimated corpse?

If were talking about real ones, like ALOT of people on this site who are for lack of a better term living vampires, then Im going to say ummm.....BIG GIANT NO! Specifically on a scientific level. What your talking about would cause heart attacks and stokes. If your talking about the term "do what your heart tells you" like thinking of it as the emotional center, then that makes more sense. But otherwise Ill go out on limb here with the fact that I dont tend to collect brain cells in my chest cavity and more than anyone else (lymph nodes do occasionally pick us dislodged brain cells called memory cells which can on a rare occasion cause old flashes of broken memory)

If were talking about game vamps or fictional bedtime story vamps, then....sure what the hell, why not. For all I know they also have a brain in their foot. Its fiction, maybe they can also turn into dinosaurs!

personally i believe that there are
many different species of vampire
so, why not have a few with
"a brain in their heart"
i see nothing wrong with that.


and since its a book,
i can say every author
of a vamp book has their
own version of vampires
for instance the vamps from
anne rice and from Stephenie Meyer

two different vamps yet...

A new twist to the fable of the vampire, like the Blade series which there was a new vampire genetic egineering..

Just maybe.

I just had to laugh at this. It gives a whole new meaning to the phrase, "heart smart".

Do I think Vampyres have a brain in the heart? No, just like everyone else, the brain in is the right place, the skull.

But as for "Vampires" as in books and movies. It just depends on the person who created the story and whatever they want the Vampires to be.

REad the book. Loved it. Lindqvist, the author, subscribes to the virus/parasitic theory of vampirism. He never really gets to the heart of the matter. Ha! I crack myself up.

Aside from that, there are lots of twists in the book. Partial review in myJournal

I can only gather the author implied a level of symbolism with such reference and not a lesson in vampiric bio-structure. In addition, the concept of vampires still being based on legend/myth/folklore (choose your poison), as an author -- you can put hearts in their fangs, toes or eyes.
Now, based on simple anatomy, the functioning of the heart is directed by the brain; both are two separate organs operating off the same computer and nothing more.

I agree Crying Duchess. I think it's metaphorical since Oscar, the protagonist, is surrounded by either mean people or adult yahoos. His vampire friend, Eli, is the one he finally lets in.

The author does give a vivid description of the virus traveling down from the brain to the heart, but then he abandons his usual godlike stance and doesn't explain further.

Does the virus invade the heart to keep the body moving? Or does it control the heart because that is where the seat of love for humanity lies?

AS an aside, why do we seem to feel love there? Why doesn't our brain hurt with loss when we sob?

Madame BloodMother, I understand what you mean by feeling in our brain when the reference is always to the heart. I can only say that the brain does not carry nerve receptors that would even permit for such a thing to be possible. The brain is merely an instant message account to our bodies. Why do we cry? Why do our chests heave and ache upon loss? I find it fascinating how complicated our brains are that they opt to send messages to the our tear ducts to weep and not just have us sweat? As for "heartache", it is akin to a panic attack as best as I can describe. Of course, this is pure conjecture. I am no neuro-surgeon... (and thank goodness for that, could you imagine the lawsuits?)

Never thought of the brain-heart relationship like that, but the IM analogy is apt. We feel sorrow and weep --- why not sweat, or pee, or excrete our sadness inanother way. The brain merely informs us what we are suffering, offers a framework based upon our experience, and, at least in my case, immediately starts offering solutions --- links, alternatives, signing off.

I believe that they think with their hearts, their lust. I don't believe there is a brain inside their hearts. Everyone's hearts and brains are connected through the body. Two brains though? I doubt it. Don't you put a stake through their hearts to kill them? It wouldn't have to go through a brain to cause death....

Vampires still have a heart, it just no longer beats. They no longer have the EMOTIONAL heart. ;)

Brain in the heart? Don't believe it. Or, rather, I wouldn't write that into MY vampire fiction story. haha....

Physically the matter in the heart cannot perform as the matter in the brain, yet with "fiction" anything is possible.

i see it all as sybolism. the brain is rational thought and the heart emotional.... mayhaps they are trying to elude to the fact that vampires as a more evolved being are more rationally in control of our emotions???