Blood Sack to Sacks of Blood: The Social Acceptance of the Vampire in Popular Culture

19 Pages Posted: 21 Oct 2010

Date Written: September 1, 2010

Abstract

The popularity of the vampire in the early 21st century can be viewed as part of a long cultural cycle in which the popularity of the beast waxes and wanes. As the cycle moves each new wave has changed the image of the demon in both popular culture and mythology. From the earliest recorded history and image to the latest incarnation the vampire has undergone physical change along with an incremental socialisation (McClelland, 2006). Such incremental acceptance is best traced at first through the printed record. However, from the early 20th Century through to the 21st Century, the passage of the vampire through the medium of popular culture has been traced by an ever increasing use of moving image. Despite the current proliferation of the Vampire in the popular culture of the early 21st century there is evidence of a long popular engagement and fascination with the vampire. Throughout this article an argument will be presented that the vampire has itself transformed from an undesirable demonic force, through the later 20th century to become through the mediation of popular culture an ‘everyman’.

Keywords: Vampire, History

Suggested Citation

Cardow, Andrew, Blood Sack to Sacks of Blood: The Social Acceptance of the Vampire in Popular Culture (September 1, 2010). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1694259 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1694259

Andrew Cardow (Contact Author)

Massey University ( email )

Private Bag 11 222
Auckland
New Zealand

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