4. Twilight (2009)
The 2009 Twilight film directed by Catherine Hardwicke is a box-office smash, it tells a high school love story happens between a human teenage girl and a dashing ‘young’ vampire. Like the Dracula film I analysed earlier, this one is an adaptation from a book with the same title, which is written by the American author Stephenie Meyer.
Differing from other vampire films, Twilight (2009) provides “different picture of a vampire” (Létalová, 2014, p. 1). Unlike their vampire “ancestors”, the vampire characters in Twilight (2009) are not afraid of daylight. They will glow and show their “true form” under the impact of direct sunlight. However, the belief that vampires will be burnt into ashes while exposing to the direct sunlight is just an old superstition (origins from the Gothic fictions in Victoria era), and the changes which have been made in the Twilight (2009) are nothing more than add some new superstitions about vampires. To be more specific, in terms of giving definitions to vampires, there are not fundamental differences between this film and the other earlier vampire films. They are still the “corpse supposed to drink the blood of the living by biting their necks with long pointed canine teeth”, according to the Oxford Advanced Learner 's Dictionary.
However, the rise of the mainstreaming vampire characters like Edward marks a distinct shift in the representation of otherness in contemporary vampire films. The concept of otherness lines in the
In the essay Civilized Vampires Versus Savage Werewolves: Race and Ethnicity in Twilight, Natalie Wilson argues for an examination of how werewolves and vampires are depicted in the hit book trilogy Twilight by Stephenie Meyer. Wilson has a doctorate in women's studies and literature, and has written a great deal of books and essays upon the Twilight series and many other monster-based book through the lense of a feminist writer. (Wilson). She posted regularly on her blog while all the Twilight movies came out, and she’s recently been writing another book and editing old essays. Her very first published book was called Seduced by Twilight, and she has a blog by the same title (Wilson).
Since the beginning of time vampires have been categorized into different "types” and are portrayed in different ways throughout several books. This paper will focus on three vampires from the following books: Dracula by Bram Stoker, and I am Legend by Richard Matheson. Dracula is considered to be the traditional vampire, where it all started, and the vampires in Matheson’s book, follow somewhat Stoker’s concept, but is more of a modern “type” of vampires. Certain vampire elements have been presented, but others have been completely removed or altered. In addition, elements along with appearances are used to infer if the vampire is a form of “the other”. There are two types of vampires; the traditional or modern vampire which can be distinguished based on the elements present in their storyline.
In the article, "Girls Just Wanna Have Fangs: The Unwarranted Backlash Against Fans of the World's Most Popular Vampire," Sady Doyle argues and criticizes that the Twilight series is not one of the best reads. When thinking of romance a lot of teenagers think of Romeo and Juliet, but this time it's a vampire and a human being. She offers her insight on how important it is to cater to a particular audience and how successful it is.
The truly shocking and terrible, blood-sucking-monster we once knew have now changed into beautiful, perfect,and healthy human beings. This paper will discuss the change and the reason why the change of idea many still accept and like the modern picture of vampires.In order to answer this, I will examine the differences between Bram Stoker's Dracula , the typical figure of horror before, and the soft light just before sunrise or after sunset's Edward Cullen, the obvious example of the 21st century vampire. From this, I will be able to decide out what changed in the features of the vampires we know today.Many would think about Edward Cullen as a "shockingly disrespectful behavior of the vampire old example" (Mole).
They shun the light and crave the taste of blood. The mere thought of them could make a grown man tremble. But what if a vampire wasn’t just a horrific creature of the night? What if they were completely human, enabling them to hide in plain sight? Wouldn’t that make them more dangerous? Due to popular Gothic literature, vampires are commonly romanticized to be pale bloodsuckers that hide in the dark, waiting for their next meal. This version of a vampire makes them easy to spot in literature, but is also very limiting in that it only lends itself to that specific genre. However, a different version, laid out by Thomas Foster, shows how anyone, whether they be fictional or nonfictional, can be considered a vampire through analysis of
Vampires have been around for centuries, they represent the fear of many things such as sexuality, race, gender, etc. and above all, they stand for the fear of diseases. Vampires have once been the symbol of horror due to their terrific depictions and were described as a threat to the humanity. Throughout time, the image of vampire has changed dramatically from a monstrous, inhumanely creature that doesn’t belong to human society to such an attractive and adaptive figure that expresses more of the human side than the evil. They developed human feelings, senses, and live within our society. Modern vampire movies are often more romantic and “sympathetic” comparing to the past. Vampires have abandoned their horror and evolved to a more
A major change is how vampires react in sunlight. In the beginning of Dracula we are to believe that he can only go out at night. Later on Jonathan Harker believes he saw Dracula on the streets of Whitby during the day. Van Helsing later confirms that vampires are only weakened by sunlight. The vampires in the Patricia Waddell books and the Buffy series are unable to step foot in daylight without burning up. However in Waddell’s books the vamps can easily be revived. These two adjustments to the original make sunlight an instant death to a vamp instead of just being weakened. Surprisingly the vampires of the Twilight series remain closest to Stoker’s original because even though they sparkle in daylight they still walk around during the day.
Honors Theses. Paper 821.Meehan, Paul. The Vampire in Science Fiction Film and Literature, edited by Paul Meehan McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, 2014. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com.ezproxy.lib.apsu.edu/lib/austinpeay- ebooks/detail.action
This has been examined how classification about people because of particular differences leads towards construction of other. Afterwards, short historic development about otherness has been outlined along with concept has been implemented to the Butler’s Fledgling. But, differences within stereotypical along with Butler’s Ina vampires have been depicted and also reasons for alterations have been provided. This in addition has been termed how protagonist within Fledgling deviates or moved from vampire community along with what Butler intends towards attaining with those differences. That leads towards explanation about separate forms and also reasons of oppression: protagonist within Fledgling experiences oppression because of hybridity, race, and sexuality along with disability. Concept about intersectionality has been implemented to exemplify how those forms of oppression have been interconnected and also influence one another.
The vampire is an embodiment of society 's deepest fears. Throughout literary history, the vampire has always been characterised as a vile figure of pure evil. However the depiction of the vampire is affected by the social, historical and political context of the time. As context shifts, so does the collective fear of society, with the portrayal of the vampire following suit. Dracula, I Am Legend and Twilight, three extremely popular books of vampire fiction created during vastly different periods in history, are representative of this shift. In Dracula, the titular character is depicted as an anti-christ figure by the author, Bram Stoker, who attempts to warn people about the dangers of straying from traditional Christian ideals. I Am Legend, a nineteen-fifties post-apocalyptic novel, emphasises the dangers of a world ravaged by environmental destruction. The wasteland, that was once earth, becomes populated by animalistic, brutal vampires that have been created as a result of an environmental plague. Finally, Twilight is a teen-angst novel written by Stephenie Meyer in 2005 and adapted into a movie of the same name in 2008. In a day and age where more people have begun to adopt humanitarian views, society has put a strong emphasis on rehabilitation and redemption. Contrary to this ideology, Edward Cullen, the main vampire, has a deeply ingrained fear that he is beyond saving thus reflecting society 's fears that one can inherently be beyond redemption.
Different depictions of vampires are commonly exhibited in vampire folklore in past and present literature and film. The diversity of different variations of vampire legends are prominently seen in most literature, but the main ideas and attributes are generally the same. This is not that case when focusing on specific novels discussed in class. The novels I Am Legend by Richard Matheson and Fledgling by Octavia Butler are two contrasting works of vampire folklore. The novels are about different societies of vampires. They both emerged in different ways, the survive and feed in contrasting ways, and they both represent completely different forms of vampires. This essay will examine the characterizations of the contrasting the vampire species in both I Am Legend and Fledgling, as well as, investigating how these different species of vampires relate to human species.
In the 1897 novel “Dracula” by Bram Stoker, a vampire named Count Dracula is brought about and brung into the “real world”. Many stories, books, movies, and games have developed from this novel. In the novel, Dracula has a lot of myths attached to him. These myths are what make him a vampire, and so when other people come up with these new stories or books or movies, they also implement myths into their characters to give them life as a vampire. In every story, most of the characters are considered either “bad” and “evil” or “good” and “friendly”. These labels are based on the characters actions, thoughts (when possible), and personality traits. In Dracula, Count Dracula would primarily be classified as the antagonist and evil. As previously mentioned, this is based on the fact that he made evil decisions, and had very bad qualities about him. However, in Twilight, Edward is a much more difficult character to label. Him and the Count have many similarities, however they are also much different.
Vampires have aroused a perennial fascination within humanity since their fictional materialization into history. However, it is over the course of the last century that these creatures have become an iconic symbol of mystifying horror and inexplicable desire. Recently, the vampire has undergone a significant reconstruction of physical appearance, behaviour, and surroundings, along with, extensive modifications to its super-natural disadvantages. These distinct character adaptations are imperative when considering two of the most notable vampires ever fashioned: Count Dracula and Edward Cullen. The dissimilarity between Bram Stoker’s 19th century, Count Dracula, and Stephenie Meyer’s 21st century, Edward Cullen, is a complex reflection of the contrasting societies from which these vampires emerged.
As one of the most attractive and enduring figures in the Gothic literature, the vampires have moved from being a peripheral element with the genre to a place near the center and are capable of generating its own massive tradition now. In the recent literary history, they have already been adapted to play a role of a rebel against the moral, social, religious, and even sexual taboos. Put simply, the vampires are now a metaphor of human beings in the modern society and life.
The legend of the vampire has emerged countless times within human imagination over the past few centuries. The first available representation of the mythical creature in prose fiction can be found in John Polidori’s “The Vampyre” (1810). It was not until eight decades later that Bram Stoker popularized the existence of this figure with the publication of “Dracula” in 1897. The folklore of the vampire has come a long way since and can be found in today’s popular media more frequently than ever before. However, with due course of time, the representation of the creature has taken alternate routes and today’s vampires are noticeable different – socially and physically – from their predecessors. One effective path to trace this