Tea at Trianon: The Vampire Craze

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Monday, December 14, 2009

The Vampire Craze

I don't get it.... Share

2 comments:

Julygirl said...: I don't get it either and I don't know anyone who does. Historically, the fascination has been around forever except during the time in our culture when we avoided all things ugly and wore white gloves. I think of it more on a Fruedian level as an expression of supressed sexual urges rather than a distorted spiritual fascination of some kind.; December 14, 2009 at 9:16:00 AM EST
Enbrethiliel said...: +JMJ+

Vampires appeal to teenagers! They brood, they're misunderstood, they turn their backs on society, they're (allegedly) very sexy, and they look good in black. ;-)

With the exception of Anne Rice's novels, most of modern vampire books and movies are marketed towards the young. Buffy was a show for teenagers, and though it is no longer on the air, the graphic novel spin-offs are apparently doing very well. Blade was also promoted to young people, though, of course, anyone who enjoys Action or is a fan of Wesley Snipes would like it, too. (However, Blade III introduces two "next generation" slayers, who will, presumably, take over the rest of the franchise, should a fourth movie ever be greenlighted.) As for Twilight . . . Sigh!

Even Paranormal Romance novels, which have a disproportionately huge vampire population, target younger Romance readers.

Then there's the idea of the innocent ingenue, traditionally the vampire's victim, being turned on its head so that she becomes the vampire's slayer. There are lots of "tough" heroines in the new Urban Fantasy genre; and it's obvious why a certain segment would find this appealing.

Finally, of course, there's the religious element--but you'd already know that from Brantigny's post! =); December 15, 2009 at 7:39:00 AM EST