Piece of Mind: Vampires - good or evil?

By Alexandra McCluskey
Staff Writer

Vampires: a controversial, obsessive topic unexplained since the dawn of time. Humans have been consumed with a fascination for the macabre and evil.

Maybe we seek to understand it or justify ourselves by comparison with a “villain.”

I am definitely not an exception to this rule. I’ve grown up around the odd and creepy, fostered in an environment that created a sort of admiration, and definite obsession, with all things horror and supernatural.

The thing I’ve latched onto most is vampires. The entire idea, image, fantasy and world that the story of vampires creates is alluring.

The temptation of immortality, the endless opportunities and lack of repercussions; it’s fascinating.

Psychologically, those who have been through more than others have an affinity for things deemed “wrong” or “bad.” They recognize an aspect of that in themselves or a similar situation.

Every villain has a backstory, normally a heartbreaking one. There’s a sort of understanding between the viewer and villain.

Don’t get me wrong, evil is still evil. There are boundaries better left untouched, and actions deemed unapproachably wrong.

Those pillars still stand in our society, but within the world of fantasy and the supernatural? All bets are off.

Vampires were originally documented among the Slavic people, an undead creature that inflicts harm on its surrounding area. Nowadays, vampires have turned into a pop-culture, almost romantic, idea.

Take the “Twilight” movies for example: one of the best-know love stories of the 2000s. Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) is a 108-year-old teenage vampire who perilously falls for a mortal girl, Bella (Kristen Stewart).

Not only that, but Edward restricts his blood dies to that of animals only, and even sparkles in the sunlight. The universe in which Stephanie Meyer, author of “Twilight”, created is romantic in nature. You can’t help but fall in love with her idea of a vampire.

Compare that to one of the earliest, most famous vampire stories, “Dracula.”

Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” is one of a dangerous, power-hungry demon, preying upon young women. It is a medieval story filled with evil, and an early exploration of controversial topics.   

The concept of the vampire has shifted to become entirely romantic in nature. The love and seduction within the world of darkness seen in Anne Rice’s “The Vampire Chronicles” is as good as it gets when it comes to falling down the rabbit hole.

Yes, vampires are inherently “evil,” due to the fact that their source of sustenance is human blood. Yet they were once human, still carrying around those memories and feelings.

Fictionally, they still have the ability to love, to feel anguish, and they still exist, though in a state different than you or I.

Good or evil? That’s determined by action, making the evil stereotype not exactly fair, depending on the universe of vampire you’re examining.