Thursday, November 10, 2011

Vampire Lore from Dracula (1897)

I wonder how much vampire lore Bram Stoker made up for Dracula (1897) versus how much he incorporated from tradition?

Here are some vampire tenets from Dracula. Vampires:
  1. Feed by sucking blood from humans
  2. Cannot be seen in mirrors
  3. Cannot cross over a shoreline except at the slack of low tide or the flood of high tide but can be carried by someone else at any tide stage
  4. Cannot enter someone's home unless invited by somebody (anybody) and once invited, can return without restriction
  5. Possess supernatural powers only at night
  6. Supernatural powers include mesmerism, strength of 20 men, command of wild animals, ability to change form into animals (often a wolf or a bat), may dematerialize into a mist or sparks of light, can pass through cracks, and can control the immediately surrounding weather
  7. Have the strength and capabilities of ordinary humans during the day (Hollywood seems to have invented their vulnerability to sunlight)
  8. Can be destroyed only by a stake through the heart, followed by decapitation and insertion of garlic into the mouth
  9. Exist eternally unless destroyed
  10. Are repelled by garlic, holy water, crosses, and communion wafers (Hollywood must have invented the idea that Christian objects only work for Christians who believe)
  11. If a victim dies under the influence of a vampire, then the victim, too, becomes a vampire
  12. Victims that don't die or who escape in time, will recover normally

Reference:
Bram Stoker. Dracula [Kindle Edition]. 1897.

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