Vampire God

Mary Y. Hallab

Description

It seems we're awash in vampires these days, in everything from movies, television shows, and novels to role-playing games, rock bands, and breakfast cereals. But what accounts for their enduring popular appeal? In Vampire God, Mary Y. Hallab examines the mythic figure of the vampire from its origins in early Greek and Slavic folklore, its transformation by Romantics like Byron, Le Fanu, and Stoker, and its diverse representations in present-day popular culture. The allure of the vampire, Hallab argues, lies in its persistent undeadness, its refusal to accept its mortal destiny of death and decay. Vampires appeal to our fear of dying and our hope for immortality, and as a focus for our doubts and speculations, vampire literature offers answers to many of our most urgent questions about the meaning of death, the nature of the human soul, and its possible survival after bodily dissolution. Clearly written, with wry humor, Vampire God is a thoroughly researched, ambitious study that draws on cultural, anthropological, and religious perspectives to explore the significance and function of the vampire in relation to the scientific, social, psychological, and religious beliefs of its time and place.
Acknowledgments
Introduction

1.  Vampires and Science

2.  Vampires and Society

3.  Vampires and Psychology: Body, Soul, and Self

4.  The Religious Vampire: Reason, Romantics, and Victorians

5.  The Religious Vampire: The Twentieth Century

6.  The Vampire God: Nature and the Numinous

Notes
Works Consulted
Index

Sujets

• Fantasy (canción de Mariah Carey)
• Folclore
• Science fiction
• Folklore
• Fantasy

Informations

• Publié par: State University of New York Press
• Date de parution: 30 mars 2010
• Nombre de lectures: 1
• EAN13: 9781438428581
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

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Vampire God

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Vampire God

The Allure of the Undead in Western Culture

MARY Y. HALLAB

Cover design by Kevin Prufer

Published by State University of New York Press, Albany

© 2009 State University of New York

All rights reserved

Printed in the United States of America

No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or oth- erwise without the prior permission in writing of the publisher.

For information, contact State University of New York Press, Albany, NY www.sunypress.edu

Production by Eileen Meehan Marketing by Michael Campochiaro

Library of Congress CataloginginPublication Data

Hallab, Mary Y., 1940–  Vampire god : the allure of the undead in Western culture / Mary Y. Hallab.  p. cm.  Includes bibliographical references and index.  ISBN 978-1-4384-2859-8 (hardcover : alk. paper)  ISBN 978-1-4384-2860-4 (pbk. : alk. paper)  1. Vampires in literature. 2. Vampire films. 3. Vampires on television. 4. Folk literature—History and criticism. 5. Fantasy fiction—History and criticism. I. Title.

PN56.V3H36 2009 809.3'9375—dc22

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

2009005250

Acknowledgments / vii

Introduction / 1

Contents

Chapter 1. Vampires and Science / 17

Chapter 2. Vampires and Society / 33

Chapter 3. Vampires and Psychology: Body, Soul, and Self / 49

Chapter 4.

The Religious Vampire: Reason, Romantics, and Victorians / 67

Chapter 5. The Religious Vampire: The Twentieth Century / 91

Chapter 6. The Vampire God: Nature and the Numinous / 117

Notes / 137

Works Consulted / 145

Index / 161

vi

Contents

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Preface

Acknowledgments

vii

This book couldn’t have been completed without the valuable help of Kevin Prufer and Martha Collins. Thanks also to Sheryl Craig, Celia Kingsbury, Charles Martin, Don Melichar, and the good people at the University of Central Missouri’s Interlibrary Loan office. This book is dedicated to Kevin Prufer.

vii

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