Over the last few years, I’ve realized that I belong to a shrinking group of people that find vampires morbid. I have a proper indie perspective; this makes me avoid anything as mainstream as Twilight, but my gripe with vampires goes back further.
As a small child, I was even disturbed by The Count of Sesame Street. The way he moved, the over-dramatic accent, and the weird cape all combined to spark revulsion even in my five-year-old self. It’s not that I have a phobia, just a feeling of strong dislike.
No matter what anyone says about vampires being “good” or “bad,” they all drink blood. Drinking blood is gross; the concept is just so revolting. Even more disgusting was the copy cat trend of a few years ago, when teenagers were biting their significant others hard enough to draw blood and leave marks. Not only is this unsanitary and potentially infection-inducing, it’s downright dangerous. Have these people never heard of blood borne diseases?
It is not that everyone who is a fan of vampire-laced entertainment is going to go to such extremes, but many do view these violent, often immoral fictional creatures as being role models. Unlike other tales where teen angst and vagrancy serve a purpose in telling the story, vampire stories seem just to add them to attract readers/viewers. It is often a principle in the entertainment industry to take a run-of-the-mill, oft repeated idea, add gratuitous violence and sex and make a quick buck, and this genre uses it more than others.
Vampires are the new “it” characters. What’s next – a sitcom (wait, I think there already is one), theme park rides, Robert Pattinson underwear, and postage stamps? Pop culture goes through bizarre cycles; some things are interesting and become nostalgic memories, like baseball cards, other things just ought to be forgotten, like moonboots and “The Rachel” haircut. I believe vampires fall into the latter category.
The idea of vampire fiction as a revamping of teenage reading habits is very shallow: “At least they are reading.” I compare it to someone who is thrilled that a starving child has been given lead paint chips, because “At least they are eating.” In fact, it can have the opposite effect., Why spend time analyzing Austen or Fitzgerald, when it is so much easier to paw through mass-produced drivel? Light reading certainly has a place, but vampires as the main topic?
The story ideas are just getting more and more ridiculous; a top Chicago defense attorney is secretly a vampire, but only on Thursday nights. It will sell, of course, because, oh, it has blood-sucking freaks in it. Does it have plot, well-developed characters, or emotional impact? No, but there are vampires.
Until the popularity of beings with disgusting appetites and sadistic tendencies has been exploited (or more likely shifted to something equally grotesque), I will be in other areas of the book store looking into other topics (yes, they do exist). Come join me, the novels are fine.