Vampires the Romantic Ideology behind Them
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Vampires: The Romantic Ideology Behind Them
Summary:
This article explores the romantic ideology behind the notion of vampires as shaped by poets like Byron, influenced by early 19th-century socioeconomic changes. It examines how class and gender issues affect portrayals of fatal males, such as vampires, and femmes fatales in romantic poetry.Keywords:
Vampires, romanticism, poetry, Byron, Keats, ShelleyArticle:
The French Revolution marked a loss of innocence for the aristocracy, unsettling the established social order. For some romantic poets from these higher classes, this upheaval inspired feelings of being fallen aristocrats, displaced by fate. Byron and Shelley exemplified this perspective. In "The Giaour," Byron writes of a vampiric character: "The common crowd but see the gloom/ Of wayward deeds and fitting doom;/ The close observer can espy/A noble soul, and lineage high."
Byron's departure from England, laden with scandal, and Shelley's expulsion from Oxford solidified their status as outsiders. Shelley grappled with his conflicting opinions, unable to reconcile his origins with his politics.
The romantic figure of the fallen aristocrat is linked to the fallen angel, epitomized by Milton's Satan, a figure of grandeur rather than grotesque evil. Byron's characters, like Lara, share this fallen condition: "There was in him a vital scorn of all:/ As if the worst had fall'n which could befall,/ stood a stranger in this breathing world,/ An erring spirit from another hurld."
Additionally, the early 19th century saw the rise of mass society, expanding the press and readership. While Byron became a proto-bestseller, romantic poets valued individual expression and sensibility. Byron's heroes disdain the masses yet exist among them like ghosts or damned spirits. Manfred illustrates this aptly:
"From my youth upwards
My spirit walked not with the souls of men,
Nor looked upon the earth with human eyes;
The thirst of their ambition was not mine;
The aim of their existence was not mine;
My joys, my griefs, my passions, and my powers
Made me a stranger; though I wore the form,
I had no sympathy with breathing flesh." (Manfred II, ii, 50-58)
Byron's life events also contributed to the modern image of the vampire. John William Polidori's "The Vampire" (1819), inspired by infamous gatherings at Villa Diodati with Byron, Percy Shelley, and Mary Shelley, reinforced this image. Polidori's story painted the vampire as a villainous, enigmatic aristocrat, appealing yet sinister. Byron's reaction to being mistaken for its author underscores this connection.
The vampire archetype closely aligns with the romantic "dissatisfied lover." Rafael Argullol describes how romantic love often promises passion yet leads to destruction. Byron's characters, like Manfred, embody this notion: "I loved her, and destroy'd her!" Keats explores similar themes, portraying a more passive approach in works like "Ode on Melancholy" and "La belle dame sans merci," where life and death intertwine.
Despite differing gender portrayals?"Byron with fatal males and Keats with femmes fatales?"both poets reflect love as creation and destruction. Their work mirrors a broader societal shift from patriarchal norms. Mario Praz notes that early 19th-century literature depicted male fatal lovers, while the later century favored femmes fatales, reflecting changing gender dynamics.
The fascination with vampires extends beyond Byron and Keats, appearing in other romantic poets, including Goethe. A list by Twitchell (1981) includes Southey, Coleridge, and Wordsworth.
In conclusion, the vampire figure in romantic literature represents a complex interplay of social forces: the French Revolution, emerging mass society, aristocratic decline, and shifting gender roles. This ideological knot offers insight into romantic attitudes and underscores the importance of analyzing historical texts within their context.
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