From edvamp@li.net Sat May  8 16:20:15 1999
Date: 10 Jan 1995 19:57:14 -0500
From: Edward Johnson <edvamp@li.net>
Newsgroups: alt.gothic
Subject: Re: Vampire symbolism

Stigmund Panoptical (CMEA23B@prodigy.com) wrote:
: Hmmm, are vampires "evil" by definition? People (me) always were 
: attracted to that symbolism because of those other traits (passion as 
: represented by the life bood they take, grace, sensuality, ect). 
: Personally, I see them as Dark as opposed to Evil. Darkness representing 
: Unconcious powers (as all Gothic horror is intensely metaphorical and 
: full of symbolism) in us all. One Jungian analyst compared the vampire 
: and his coffin to the various "going into the belly of the whale" myths 
: that represent a desire for change (hence, the coffin becomes the 
: alchemists vat into which we put ourselves to change and grow). Maybe 
: those "good" traits were things we admired and wanted to foster when we 
: first entered the scene. Hence, darkness (representing a lowering of 
: consciousness... or maybe over selfconsciousness), enabled a releasing of 
: represed traits.

: Anyway... Good and Evil are points of view.... Darkness is real.... and 
: fun....


: -
:   STIGMUND PANOPTICAL  CMEA23B@prodigy.com


	OK, I've been hoping for a question like this.  I believe that 
the reason that Vampyres are represented as Evil is that they are the 
diametric opposite of what society wants us to believe is Good.  Vampyres 
represent lust, satisfying physical pleasure, power, beauty, eroticism, 
hunger, and Romance.  These things are what Freud calls id impulses.  So, 
Vampyres are a manifistation of the Id.  The two main enemies of the Vampyre 
are Religion and Science.  Religion, as personified in crosses, holy 
water, exorcisms, etc, represents purity, holiness, celibacy, virtue, and 
Goodness as imposed by an outside source (God).  Science, as personified 
by characters like Van Helsing, represent order, reason, rationality, 
regimentation, and logic also as imposed by an outside source (The 
Objective Universe, Science, and although they won't admit it, God).  In 
essence, these forces represent our Superego, that part of us that tells 
us what right and wrong is, tells us to eat our veggies and not our 
neighbors.  

	Now, legends and movies depicts Vampyres as evil, because society 
views order, virtue, and reason to be Good, and satisfying desire, Bad.  
However, any Freudian will tell you that not satisfying the Id impulses 
leads to repression, which is the main cause of most neuroses, phobias, 
anxieties, etc.  It is this conflict that fucks us up.  We have natural 
impulses that society tells us are bad.

	So, are Vampyres Evil?  Definitely not.  Psychologically, 
Vampyres are exceptionally healthy since they do not suffer the same 
guilt that we do.  Louis is a good example of what happens when guilt 
overcomes need.  

	Well, thanks for letting me get this out.  Cheers.

						Ever and Always
						Edvamp