VAMPIRE LITERATURE IN ENGLISH WRITTEN BEFORE 1938
----------------------------------------------------------------x
CRITERIA FOR THE LIST: A vampire is (1) a corpse creature or phantom of the dead; who (2) drains or drinks blood. Some fuzziness or ambiguity is allowed for meeting both criteria as long as each is at least hinted at without being disproven.

CRITERIA FOR THE DATE: I've arbitrarily chosen 1937 (HPL's death) as the cutoff year, so as not to make the list too large, or too influenced by cinema versions. The list is organized according to the date published or translated into English, to help keep track of the influence of the stories on each other.

At the end of the main list are some items written before 1838, but not published unti later; followed by two lists of stories rejected for the main list (for not meeting the 'vampire' criteria).

Please make suggestions to help add to the list. Thanks.

----------------------------------------------------------------x
1100s: See 1856: [REVENANT OF CASTLE ANANTIS], below
1732: [ARNOLD PAUL CASE], news digest regarding a "vampire" infestation in a Hungarian village of Medreiga in 1727.
1744: THE JEWISH SPY, an epistolary novel, translating LETTRES JUIVES (1738). Letter 137 relates the [KISILOVA VILLAGE CASE] describing an infestation in 1737 in a Serbian village, which starts with an old man causing the death of his son; the [ARNOLD PAUL CASE] see above, but with more detail; and its sequel the [SON OF MILLO CASE], discussing a second vampire infestation in the same town 5 years later.
1759: DISSERTATIONS ON ... VAMPIRES ... [Etc.], by Dom Calmet. Translating the first edition (1746) of Calmet's Treatise on Revenants. Discusses the [ARNOLD PAUL CASE] see above; its sequel the [SON OF MILLO CASE], see above; the [KISILOVA VILLAGE CASE] see above; [REPORT OF COUNT DE CABRERAS], an army captain digs up and destroys several blood-sucking vampires, after questioning local peasants, circa 1730; [BLACK HORSE] French officer describes a curious method for detecting vampires in Wallachia;
1765: THE THIRSTY VAMPIRES, a drinking song, that explains the habits of vampires before going on to explain that if the singer has the good luck to "drink when I'm dead", he'd rather suck on casks of wine.
1801: THALABA THE DESTROYER, epic poem by Robert Southey. Contains an episode where the the Thalaba's dead wife returns as a "vampire corpse". There's no explicit reference to blood-drain, but Southey's note explaining the word "vampire", together with Thalaba's wasted state of health after the visits, arguably supplies the defect.
1807: THE DEAD MEN OF PEST, poem by Arminius [John Herman Merivale]. A Hungarian town is devastated by a vampyre plague. In archaick stile.
1813: THE GIAOUR, epic poem by Lord Byron. Contains an episode, in the form of a prophesy, describing the protagonist's cursed future as a vampire who preys on his own children.
1819: THE VAMPYRE, short story by John Poldori. An aristocratic vampire, who seems as interested in corrupting people as in sucking their blood. He's not good marriage material.
1820: THE VAMPIRE or THE BRIDE OF THE ISLES, stage play by James Robinson Planche. Inspired by Polidori's tale.
1823: WAKE NOT THE DEAD, short story by Anonymous, evidently from a Germanic source, in POPULAR TALES AND ROMANCES OF THE NORTHERN NATIONS, v. 1. Walter rejects the title's good advice, with colorful results. I really enjoyed this story, and am surprised that it is so little known that no-one can even agree who wrote it.
1836: Entry on VAMPIRES in THE PHILOSOPHICAL DICTIONARY, by Voltaire.
1843: SPALATRO: FROM THE NOTES OF FRA GIACOMO, short story by Anonymous [J. Sheridan Le Fanu]. Features century-old corpse creatures who drink blood from goblets.
1845: VARNEY THE VAMPIRE, a penny dreadful by James Malcolm Rymer, etc. Runs for 2 years (1845-1847). Origin of the idea that two small punctures on the neck are a sign of the vampire.
1848: VAMPIRES, essay by Anonymous, in THE PICTORIAL NATIONAL LIBRARY: A MONTHLY MISCELLANY.
1850: THE PHANTOM WORLD, by Dom Calmet. Translating the second edition (1751) of Dom Calmet's Treatise on Revenants. New material includes [THE VAMPIRE OF LIEBAVA] in which a Hungarian traveler frees the village of its vampire by stealing its linen, before finally beheading it.
1854: THE MYSTERIOUS STRANGER, novelette by Anonymous, a translation of DER FREMDE (1844) by Karl von Wachsmann. A German knight brings his family to the Carpathians, where they find howling wolves, an abandoned castle, and guess what else. An obvious inspiration for DRACULA.
1856: [REVENANT OF CASTLE ANANTIS], by William [of Newburgh/Newbury/Newbridge], translating his Latin writings (HISTORY OF ENGLAND). William, a 12th century English monk, relates a tale told him by an older monk: A wicked man dies unshriven, after which his corpse haunts the vicinity spreading sickness and death. His corpse is dug up and destroyed, ending the plague. When dug up, it is found to be bloated with liquid gore "as if it contained the blood of many persons". William's writings, as well of those of his contemporary Walter Map, contain a number of tales of revenant corpses, which resemble those of East European vampires. This, however, is the only one that hints at blood drain, making it arguably the oldest vampire tale on this list.
1867: THE LAST LORDS OF GARDONAL, novella by Anonymous [William Gilbert]. Cruel mountain lord learns his new bride is a vampire.
1872: CARMILLA, novella by Sheridan Le Fanu. Gothic mystery whose solution is "vampire". Famous for supposedly being about lesbians, though my guess is the author was innocent of any such intention.
1873: THE SOLDIER AND THE VAMPIRE, folk tale collected in the 1800s by Alexandr Afansaev, in Ralston's RUSSIAN FOLK TALES (1873) . This vampire's methods of blood drain not what you'd expect. The volume also contains an extensive essay, from Afansaev's research, on vampire traditions. From the same collection are THE COFFIN-LID, THE TWO CORPSES, and THE DOG AND THE CORPSE, all of which are associated with vampires by Ralston's commentary; however the stories themselves only call the monster a "corpse", and do not mention any blood drinking (though neither do they rule it out). THE FIEND from the same collection, is a corpse-eating demon in the form of a handsome youth; called a "vampire" in later translations, though to my mind he does not quality.
1883: KEN'S MYSTERY, short story by Julian Hawthorne. American meets a mysterious woman while traveling through Ireland.
1886: A MYSTERY OF THE CAMPAGNA, by Von Degen [Anne Crawford]. Secluded artist it Italy foolishly messes with a nearby tomb, releasing its occupant.
1889: THE DEAD LEMAN, short story by Theophile Gautier, translating LA MORTE AMOUREUSE (French, 1836). Later (and earlier?) translated under other titles, like CLARIMONDE, THE DEATHLY LOVER, THE DEAD LOVER, etc. I don't much care for it.
1890: THE VAMPIRE MAID, short story by Hume Nisbet. There's some slight ambiguity whether this femme fatale is a corpse-creature; but there are clues enough.
1890: THE OLD PORTRAIT, short story by Hume Nisbet.
1893: VAMPIRE LORE, article by L.J. Vance, in THE OPEN COURT magazine.
1897: DRACULA, novel by Bram Stoker. Good stuff, especially the early chapters.
1900: [STORY OF CROGLIN GRANGE], by Augustus Hare, relating a story told him by Capt. Fisher in 1874.
1900: THE TOMB OF SARAH, short story by F.G. Loring. Church renovations disturb a 17th century vampire.
1905: FOR THE BLOOD IS THE LIFE, short story by F. Marion Crawford. Murdered peasant girl returns as a vampire.
1905: THE VAMPIRE NEMESIS, short story by Dolly [Leonard D'Olliver]. I do not normally count blood-drinking bats, but this one may be the spirit of a suicide, placing this in the context of the lore that vampires may be shapeshifters.
1910: THE SINGULAR DEATH OF MORTON, short story by Algernon Blackwood. Can you guess what killed him?
1912: THE ROOM IN THE TOWER, short story by E.F. Benson. A decidedly un-sexy vampire lady.
1912: THE PRINCESS IN THE COFFIN, translating a Danish fairy tale collected by Sven Grundvig circa 1870. An earlier translation by Andrew Lang, THE PRINCESS IN THE CHEST (1897), omits the detail that identifies the princess as a vampire.
1914: DRACULA'S GUEST, fragment by Bram Stoker, written 1890s. In which Harker meets one of Dracula's brides (the blonde) while passing through Germany.
1919: AN EPISODE OF CATHEDRAL HISTORY, short story by M. R. James. Vague and unresolved, and the word "vampire" is never used. But there are hints.
1919: THE SUMACH, short story by Ulric Daubeny. I do not usually count blood-drinking plants as "vampires"; but this one is framed as a extension of standard vampire lore.
1922: NOSFERATU, silent film by F.W. Murnau. Earliest and least sexy of the film Draculas.
1922: MRS. AMWORTH, by E.F. Benson. In which a person can be a vampire (possessed by an evil spirit) both before and after death.
1924: DRACULA, stage play.
1925: FOUR WOODEN STAKES, short story by Victor Rowan. A traditional approach to vampirism.
1925: THE RETURN OF THE UNDEAD, by Arthur Leads [Arthur Leeds]. Early story featuring a child vampire.
1926: BAT'S BELFRY, short story by August Derleth.
1927: THE CANAL, by Everil Worrell. In which vampires can't cross running water.
1927: THE WAILING WELL, short story, by M.R. James. The fate of a bad boy scout.
1927: THE MAN WHO CAST NO SHADOW, short story by Seabury Quinn. In which Jules de Grandin meets two different kinds of vampire, at least one of whom meets the criteria.
1928: THE SHUNNED HOUSE, novella by H.P. Lovecraft. A non-traditional take on vampires. But it meets the criteria.
1931: A RENDEZVOUS IN AVEROIGNE, by Clark Ashton Smith. Vampires in medieval France.
1931: DRACULA, a film starring Bela Lugosi, from the 1924 stage play.
1932: THE HORROR FROM THE MOUND, short story by Robert E. Howard.
1936: THE HOUR OF THE DRAGON, novel, by Robert E. Howard. In chapter 18, Conan meets Princess Akivasha, an ancient Stygian vampire lady who "died to live forever."
1936: LOOT OF THE VAMPIRE, short story by Thorp McClusky. In which vampires DO appear in mirrors, but as corpses, according to how long they they have been dead.
1937: I, THE VAMPIRE, short story by Henry Kutner. An early step in the direction of humanizing vampires.

--------------------------------------------------x

The following were published in English after 1937 (my cutoff point), but written significantly earlier.
1941: THE CASE OF CHARLES DEXTER WARD, short novel by H.P. Lovecraft, written 1924. After being raised from his tomb, Joseph Curwen has an enormous appetite for fresh human blood.
1972: THE FAMILY OF THE VOURDALAK, translation of short story by Aleksey Tolstoy, previously in Russian (1884) and (unpublished) in French (1839).

---------------------------------------------------x

REJECTED WITH RESERVATIONS: THE DEATH OF HALPIN FRAZIER (1891), by Ambrose Bierce (no suggestion of blood drinking, but the strangulation and the preying on family both fit the oldest vampire traditions); LILITH (1895), by George MacDonald (Lilith is very corpselike when first met, but I'm not sure she's a corpse-creature in any ordinary sense; ulimately she's more akin to a Lamia); WILL (1899) by Vincent O'Sullivan (no suggestion of blood drain, but the corpse's body remains uncorrupt while she slowly drains the life of her murderer); COUNT MAGNUS (1904) by M.R. James (perhaps Magnus COULD be a vampire, but if so, his blood-drinking habits are camoflaged by his demon familiar sucking all the skin off the face); [ALYMER VANCE AND] THE VAMPIRE (1914), by Claude & Alice Askew (not a corpse creature, but possessed at times by the ghost of a witch); THE FACE (1922) by E.F. Benson (Roger Wyburn might be a vampire, by analogy to Benson's other vampire tales and because Wyburn does remain uncorrupt in his tomb, but we do not know the fate of his victim; THE HILLS OF THE DEAD (1930), by Robert E. Howard (these zombie-like "vampires" are said to drink the souls or life of those they kill, but there is no suggestion they drink blood).

REJECTED: THE BRIDE OF CORINTH, by Goethe (German version 1797); VIKRAM AND THE VAMPIRE (1870), by Richard Burton (trans.) ('vampire' here refers to the 'baital" of Indian folklore, but in this tale at least, there is no suggestion it is a blood-drinker or life-drinker); THE FATE OF MADAME CAPANEL (1880) by E.L. Linton (no actual vampire or other spook appears in this tale of superstitious French peasantry); LET LOOSE (1890) by Mary Cholmondeley (corpse creature implied to use its severed hand to strangle victims); THE PARASITE (1894), by A.C. Doyle (not a corpse-creature, and does not drain blood); THE TRUE STORY OF A VAMPIRE (1894), by Eric, Count Stenbock (I don't understand this story, but see no indication the "vampire" is a corpse creature); GOOD LADY DUCAYNE (1896), by Mary E. Braddon (she's not a corpse, at least not yet); THE BLOOD OF THE VAMPIRE (1897) by F. Maryatt (the title translates as "the racial heritage of the wrong kind of girl"); THE VAMPIRE (1898), poem by Rudyard Kipling. THE VAMPIRE (1899) by Francis Hindes Groome in GYPSY-FOLK TALES (variant of Ralston's THE FIEND); MARSYAS IN FLANDERS (1900), by Vernon Lee (monster is not a corpse creature, and a stake through it's body at the end is the only connection to vampire lore); LUELLA MILLER (1902) by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman (a sort of living vampire, who does not drink blood, though her influence does in some way survive her death); AN UNSCIENTIFIC STORY 1903), by Louise J. Strong (not corpse creatures, and their diet is not limited to blood); NEGOTIUM PERAMBULANS (1922), by E.F. Benson (it drains blood, but there is no evidence it is a corpse creature as opposed to a demon); THE SUSSEX VAMPIRE (1924), by A.C. Doyle (Holmes investigates woman for sucking the blood of an infant; but there is no suspicion she is a corpse-creature); THE VOYAGE OF KING EUVORAN (1933), by Clark Ashton Smith (there is no indication these winged blood drinkers are corpse creatures); THE VAMPIRE OF THE VILLAGE (1936?), by G.K. Chesterton ("vampire" in this context merely meants "woman of bad reputation").



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 17 Apr 21 | 09:14PM by Platypus.

Impressive, Platypus.

I agree about MacDonald's phantasmagorical Lilith. As you say:

"LILITH (1895), by George MacDonald (Lilith is very corpselike when first met, but I'm not sure she's a corpse-creature in any ordinary sense; ultimately she's more akin to a Lamia)."

I have read -- and taught -- this novel; and I think you are right; by the strict definition you gave, MacDonald's Lilith is not a vampire. In confirmation whereof: the word "vampire" never appears in the novel.

Dale Nelson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Impressive, Platypus.
>
> I agree about MacDonald's phantasmagorical Lilith.
> As you say:
>
> "LILITH (1895), by George MacDonald (Lilith is
> very corpselike when first met, but I'm not sure
> she's a corpse-creature in any ordinary sense;
> ultimately she's more akin to a Lamia)."
>
> I have read -- and taught -- this novel; and I
> think you are right; by the strict definition you
> gave, MacDonald's Lilith is not a vampire. In
> confirmation whereof: the word "vampire" never
> appears in the novel.

Thanks Dale. I'm not sure if my definition is too strict, but it seems to me that such lists quickly become formless and arbitrary if you don't set firm limits on the sort of thing one is looking for.

Among folkloric vampires, there is far more ambiguity about whether they necessarily drink blood than about whether they are dead things -- the latter seems to be more firmly part of the core definition, and their drinking or draining of blood seems to merely be a widespread belief about them. But I did not want to include every single story about a deadly phantom.

My strict definition would exclude a lot more if applied to modern fictional vampires.

Prior to 1937 there seems to be virtually nothing about vampires as immortal sex gods bestowing the gift of eternal life on their favorites. The closest we come is Akivasha, in 1936, offering immortality to Conan. But Conan - not fooled or even tempted - just says "damned vampire" and shoves her away.

Most of the early vampire stories take place against a backdrop of Christian belief in which the soul is already considered to be immortal. In this context, the vampire does not suggest the hope of eternal life -- if anything it suggests the whiff of eternal damnation. In THALABA THE DESTROYER, when the "vampire corpse" is killed, the demon inhabiting the corpse flees, and the dead woman's spirit, thus apparently set free, appears before Thalaba "crowned in glory".

In these older stories, vampires sometimes appear as attractive, and their victims are sometimes attracted to them. But this is always an illusion. The underlying idea is always that the victim would be horrified if he/she understood what the vampire truly was.

Some folks of my generation get nostalgic about THE LOST BOYS, in which vampires are still portrayed as monsters. Some say this film depicts "real vampires" as distinct from the twinkly TWILIGHT kind. But already in THE LOST BOYS, vampires were no longer sleeping in coffins, and are transformed into vampires without undergoing anything distinctly resembling death. As the title implies, they did not die, but merely went missing.

Nor are there, in early lists, any "living but diseased" vampires, as pioneered by Matheson in I AM LEGEND. Nor are there any vampires as a distinct race as in G.R.R. Martin's FEVRE DREAM. I did not even need to exclude them (except, maybe, the giant vampire bats that plague King Euvoran). These ideas, too, came later.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 18 Apr 21 | 08:40AM by Platypus.

edit



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 18 Apr 21 | 09:18AM by Knygatin.

A wide term of "vampire" for me (although not classical) might simply mean, a being that sucks the life energy out of another being. That is the essence for me. A parasite. In a relationship it is person that takes without giving*. Society is full of vampires.

*And if we look closer at that person from a psychological perspective, he/she will not find peace of mind, but will be an undead.

Knygatin Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> A wide term of "vampire" for me (although not
> classical) might simply mean, a being that sucks
> the life energy out of another being. That is the
> essence for me. A parasite. In a relationship it
> is person that takes without giving*. Society is
> full of vampires.
>
> *And if we look closer at that person from a
> psychological perspective, he/she will not find
> peace of mind, but will be an undead.


Such metaphorical usage of the word "vampire" is very old. After the ARNOLD PAUL CASE was reported in English magazines in March, 1732, introducing the word "vampire", the same magazines were saying, by May 1732, things like this: "Private Persons may be Vampires or Blood-suckers, i.e. Sharpers, Usurers, and Stockjobbers, fraudulent Guardians, unjust Stewards, and the dry Nurses of great Estates; a noble Colonel lately deceas'd, some S. Sea Directors, and the Managers of the Charitable Corporation; but nothing less than the Power of a Tr---ry, can raise up a compleat Vampyre." -- from the essay POLITICAL VAMPIRES, published May, 1732, in THE GENTLEMAN'S MAGAZINE and elsewhere.

But my list would very quickly become unmanageable if I were to throw in things like THE MERCHANT OF VENICE, or stories about corrupt politicians.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 18 Apr 21 | 09:44AM by Platypus.

Brief and disparate thoughts, interleaved, below:

Platypus Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Dale Nelson Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Impressive, Platypus.
> >
> > I agree about MacDonald's phantasmagorical
> Lilith.
> > As you say:
> >
> > "LILITH (1895), by George MacDonald (Lilith is
> > very corpselike when first met, but I'm not
> sure
> > she's a corpse-creature in any ordinary sense;
> > ultimately she's more akin to a Lamia)."
> >
> > I have read -- and taught -- this novel; and I
> > think you are right; by the strict definition
> you
> > gave, MacDonald's Lilith is not a vampire. In
> > confirmation whereof: the word "vampire" never
> > appears in the novel.
>
> Thanks Dale. I'm not sure if my definition is too
> strict, but it seems to me that such lists quickly
> become formless and arbitrary if you don't set
> firm limits on the sort of thing one is looking
> for.

This is what I see lacking in most informal analysis and criticism in the humanities, and it is sorely needed because this lack can lead to egotistical pushing matches.

Sometimes I wonder if this lack of initial clarity is purposeful, providing the opportunity to attack an interlocutor.

So I'm glad that you see value in starting from a well-defined position because this has the greatest chance of initiating a meaningful discussion.

>
> Among folkloric vampires, there is far more
> ambiguity about whether they necessarily drink
> blood than about whether they are dead things --
> the latter seems to be more firmly part of the
> core definition, and their drinking or draining of
> blood seems to merely be a widespread belief about
> them. But I did not want to include every single
> story about a deadly phantom.
>
> My strict definition would exclude a lot more if
> applied to modern fictional vampires.
>
> Prior to 1937 there seems to be virtually nothing
> about vampires as immortal sex gods bestowing the
> gift of eternal life on their favorites. The
> closest we come is Akivasha, in 1936, offering
> immortality to Conan. But Conan - not fooled or
> even tempted - just says "damned vampire" and
> shoves her away.
>
> Most of the early vampire stories take place
> against a backdrop of Christian belief in which
> the soul is already considered to be immortal. In
> this context, the vampire does not suggest the
> hope of eternal life -- if anything it suggests
> the whiff of eternal damnation. In THALABA THE
> DESTROYER, when the "vampire corpse" is killed,
> the demon inhabiting the corpse flees, and the
> dead woman's spirit, thus apparently set free,
> appears before Thalaba "crowned in glory".
>
> In these older stories, vampires sometimes appear
> as attractive, and their victims are sometimes
> attracted to them. But this is always an
> illusion. The underlying idea is always that the
> victim would be horrified if he/she understood
> what the vampire truly was.

This is interesting as a gauge of what is valued by popular cultures.

Think about the advent of the "sexy vampire". This coincides closely with the rise of popular cinema, and "image is everything" evermore, it seems. Sexy is good, cosmetically correct is good, etc.

But all of a sudden there is a popular fascination with zombies--and these are at the opposite end of the scale so far as physical attractiveness. So what has changed? How is it that foul, stinking, reanimated corpses have pushed the likes of Christopher Lee, Frank Langella, Gary Oldham, and Tom Cruise of off the pinnacle undead popularity, if indeed they have?

This is pretty speculative, I'll admit. It could be that these two distinct undead entities ("organisms"?) are not occupying the same niche in the popular imagination--maybe vampires represent one distinct set of forbidden attractions to the viewer, while zombies represent an entirely different set of characteristics, and that the two don't really overlap much.

Still, I see a hell of a lot of zombies in popular culture, and fewer vampires, at least this is how it seems to me.

But for the sake of discussion, let's proceed as if this phenomenon, the replacement of the sexy, urbane vampire by the crude and animalistic zombie is a fact. If true, it reminds me of how, in the late 70s, the romantic figure of the musical pop star, like Steven Stills, Neil Young, Jackson Browne, Judy Collins, Joni Mitchel, et al, were gradually supplanted by the punk movement, whose apparent goal was to reduce the noble and romantic in life, and replace it with as much ugliness as possible.

So what went on here? Is it happening again, with zombies in the proxy role of punk, supplanting the sexiness of the Romantic as was commonly understood in 60s/70s popular music--a role shared by cinematic vampires?

>
> Some folks of my generation get nostalgic about
> THE LOST BOYS, in which vampires are still
> portrayed as monsters. Some say this film depicts
> "real vampires" as distinct from the twinkly
> TWILIGHT kind. But already in THE LOST BOYS,
> vampires were no longer sleeping in coffins, and
> are transformed into vampires without undergoing
> anything distinctly resembling death. As the
> title implies, they did not die, but merely went
> missing.
>
> Nor are there, in early lists, any "living but
> diseased" vampires, as pioneered by Matheson in I
> AM LEGEND. Nor are there any vampires as a
> distinct race as in G.R.R. Martin's FEVRE DREAM.
> I did not even need to exclude them (except,
> maybe, the giant vampire bats that plague King
> Euvoran). These ideas, too, came later.

That was quite an image, wasn't it? The rowers being overwhelmed by the sheer number and weight of the bats...

--Sawfish

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The food at the new restaurant is awful, but at least the portions are large."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Platypus, I forgot to ask: where does Pushkin's The Family of the Vourdalak fit in?

I was introduced to this story as a televised sub-segment of the series Thriller, back the 60s, I think. I subsequently read the story. The screen version was a reasonable condensation of the original.

One almost gets the feeling that it's a disease, a plague, that the father is bringing home...truly, a folk metaphor for the plague.

--Sawfish

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The food at the new restaurant is awful, but at least the portions are large."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From C. A. Smith's "The Flower-Women" (1935), make of it what you will:

"Maal Dweb approached the flower-women with a certain caution; for he knew that they were vampires. ...
He beheld plainly the half-human features of the vampires, leaning toward him with fantastic invitation. Their weirdly slanted eyes, like oblong opals of dew and venom, ... the bright, baneful scarlet of their lips, that thirsted subtly even as they sang, awoke within him the knowledge of his peril."

Sawfish Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Platypus, I forgot to ask: where does Pushkin's
> The Family of the Vourdalak fit in?
>
> I was introduced to this story as a televised
> sub-segment of the series Thriller, back the 60s,
> I think. I subsequently read the story. The screen
> version was a reasonable condensation of the
> original.
>
> One almost gets the feeling that it's a disease, a
> plague, that the father is bringing home...truly,
> a folk metaphor for the plague.

In Tolstoy's FAMILY OF THE VOURDALAK, Gorcha is dead, as are his victims after they return as vourdalaks. The narrator defines vourdalaks as dead bodies before beginning his tale. At the beginning of the tale, when Gorcha is still alive, Gorcha foretells that if he lives he will return before 10 days, but if he returns after 10 days it means he is a vourdalak, and they must stake him. When he returns, just after 10 days, Gorcha refuses to let his son examine his wound -- presumably because it is a fatal wound. When Gorcha produces the bandit's head from his bag, it is said, with double meaning, that the reason for the dog's hostility to Gorcha was that it smelled dead flesh. His first victim, a child, dies and is buried before reappearing. Etc. etc. etc.

I'm not objecting to vampires being a metaphor, or a folk-explanation, for disease -- but only to their being rationalized away as not being actually dead (or "undead"), but only diseased, as in, for example I AM LEGEND. But I found no such stories before 1938, so the distinction is academic so far.

I did not know that THE FAMILY OF THE VOURDALAK was ever adapted for the screen. Do you know what the episode was called?



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 18 Apr 21 | 01:23PM by Platypus.

Knygatin Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> From C. A. Smith's "The Flower-Women" (1935), make
> of it what you will:
>
> "Maal Dweb approached the flower-women with a
> certain caution; for he knew that they were
> vampires. ...
> He beheld plainly the half-human features of the
> vampires, leaning toward him with fantastic
> invitation. Their weirdly slanted eyes, like
> oblong opals of dew and venom, ... the bright,
> baneful scarlet of their lips, that thirsted
> subtly even as they sang, awoke within him the
> knowledge of his peril."

Thanks for this, but I will add it to my "reject" list. These women are blood drinkers, but not corpse creatures. I made an exception for THE SUMACH only because it is said to have been a plant grown from a stake affixing a vampire's heart.

Platypus Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sawfish Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Platypus, I forgot to ask: where does Pushkin's
> > The Family of the Vourdalak fit in?
> >
> > I was introduced to this story as a televised
> > sub-segment of the series Thriller, back the
> 60s,
> > I think. I subsequently read the story. The
> screen
> > version was a reasonable condensation of the
> > original.
> >
> > One almost gets the feeling that it's a disease,
> a
> > plague, that the father is bringing
> home...truly,
> > a folk metaphor for the plague.
>
> In Tolstoy's FAMILY OF THE VOURDALAK, Gorcha is
> dead, as are his victims after they return as
> vourdalaks. The narrator defines vourdalaks as
> dead bodies before beginning his tale. At the
> beginning of the tale, when Gorcha is still alive,
> Gorcha foretells that if he lives he will return
> before 10 days, but if he returns after 10 days it
> means he is a vourdalak, and they must stake him.
> When he returns, just after 10 days, Gorcha
> refuses to let his son examine his wound --
> presumably because it is a fatal wound. When
> Gorcha produces the bandit's head from his bag, it
> is said, with double meaning, that the reason for
> the dog's hostility to Gorcha was that it smelled
> dead flesh. His first victim, a child, dies and
> is buried before reappearing. Etc. etc. etc.
>
> I'm not objecting to vampires being a metaphor, or
> a folk-explanation, for disease -- but only to
> their being rationalized away as not being
> actually dead (or "undead"), but only diseased, as
> in, for example I AM LEGEND. But I found no such
> stories before 1938, so the distinction is
> academic so far.
>
> I did not know that THE FAMILY OF THE VOURDALAK
> was ever adapted for the screen. Do you know what
> the episode was called?

Ah, I mis-remebered. Misremember the author, too. It was in an anthology film, Black Sabbath:

[en.wikipedia.org]

The series, Thriller (or Boris Karloff's Thriller) had some good stuff. Robert E. Howard's Pigeons From Hell was memorably creepy.

[www.imdb.com]

--Sawfish

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The food at the new restaurant is awful, but at least the portions are large."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Have you seen Vampyr, the 1932 film by Carl Theodor Dreyer? I have it somewhere among my files, but was long ago that I saw it. Remember it as quite beautiful. Probably available on Youtube if nowhere else.

Sawfish Wrote:
> Ah, I mis-remebered. Misremember the author, too.
> It was in an anthology film, Black Sabbath:
>
> [en.wikipedia.org])
> #%22The_Wurdulak%22

Thank you for that. I found it on youtube, in Italian. And with Boris Karloff playing Gorca. It is funny to see a story reach the big screen, when the story on which it is based does not, as far as I know, get translated to English for another 9 years.

Knygatin Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Have you seen Vampyr, the 1932 film by Carl
> Theodor Dreyer? I have it somewhere among my
> files, but was long ago that I saw it. Remember it
> as quite beautiful. Probably available on Youtube
> if nowhere else.


Thank you, I forgot about that one. Yes, I saw it. It's supposed to be based on a book by Sheridan Le Fanu, but it hardly bears much resemblance to his CARMLLA. IMBD says it was released in the USA in 1934.

1933: REVELATIONS IN BLACK, short story by Carl Jacobi: In which a beautiful vampire lady uses heliotrope perfume to cover the smell of the grave.

1931: PLACIDE'S WIFE, short story by Kirk Mashburn. Vampire in the Cajun bayou; who cannot cross running water, and is also a loup-garou. I believe there is a sequel, THE LAST OF PLACIDE'S WIFE (1932).

1932: THE BROTHERHOOD OF BLOOD, short story by Hugh B. Cave. The earliest story (of those I found so far) to be told from the POV of a vampire.

Dale Nelson Wrote:
> I have read -- and taught -- this novel; and I
> think you are right; by the strict definition you
> gave, MacDonald's Lilith is not a vampire. In
> confirmation whereof: the word "vampire" never
> appears in the novel.

Following up on this train of thought, I just reread CAS's THE END OF THE STORY. The monster there is at one point called a "vampire", by the Abbot Hilaire, but is also called a "Lamia". Her true form (according to Hilaire) is not a corpse, but a serpent; and she is not a phantom of the dead, but an ancient demon. And though her kisses drain life (as a prelude to devouring her victims entirely) it is unclear if she does this by draining blood.

1863: GLAMR, by Sabine Baring-Gould - an icelandic corpse creature.

Not sure if it should go on the main list, or on the "reserved with reservations". A corpse creature Glamr certainly is, but there is little or no indication of blood drain. The only indications of the latter is taht the creature is called a "vampire" in Baring-Gould's translation, and a quick mention of a little girl who slowly fades away and dies, possibly from Glamr's depradations. Glamr's usual method of dispatching his victims is to snap their spines by brute force.

1932: VAMPIRE VILLAGE, short story by Hugh Davidson [Edmond Hamilton]. One night a year in Transylvania, on St. George's day, all the vampires can rise, even those who have otherwise dispatched.

Platypus Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> 1932: VAMPIRE VILLAGE, short story by Hugh
> Davidson . One night a year in Transylvania, on
> St. George's day, all the vampires can rise, even
> those who have otherwise dispatched.

Sounds like the supernatural version of California's idea of "life, without the possibility of parole".

--Sawfish

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The food at the new restaurant is awful, but at least the portions are large."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yeasterday I read the short story "Satan´s Circus" (1931) by Eleanor Smith. It is a tale about a traveling circus and the female owner of it seems to be a very suspicious and dubious individual. When the circus travels through Romania, the locals bar their doors and hang wreaths of garlic on them, smelling a rat. The animals, tigers, lions, bears etc., are scared of the woman, so are the employees of the circus. She is pale, arrogant, having strange ways and she is caught red-handed sucking blood of one the dead employees at the end of the story.

Thank you, Minicthulhu. I just tracked that one via WEIRD TALES and rather enjoyed it. A cut above the average for their vampire stories of the period.

It is left very ambiguous what sort of creature she is supposed to be. But it is very hard not to suspect "vampire".

I'm guessing it was one of the inspirations for the 1972 Hammer horror film THE VAMPIRE CIRCUS.

"My Strange Adventure with a Vampire" (1929) by Hugh Docre Purcell
[www.isfdb.org]

Minicthulhu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> "My Strange Adventure with a Vampire" (1929) by
> Hugh Docre Purcell
> [www.isfdb.org]

Thank you. That was interesting. The vampire lore is possibly influenced by "Mrs. Amworth" by EF Benson.

Today I finished a short novel called "In The Dwellings of The Wilderness" (1904) by Catherine Bryson Taylor. It tales a story about excavations in a lost city (in Egypt?) that has been buried under the desert sands for hundred and hundred years. The main characters come across an underground chamber with the door blocked up by the original builders and once they are inside they find a hideous object lying on the ground which turns out to be the mummy of a princess with a very bad reputation. After opening the chamber, strange things begin to happen, some of the men disappear without a trace, there are strange hallucinations on the part of those who come too close to the chamber and there is something (of course, it is the mummy come alive) prowling about at night which has definite vampirish tendencies (which is plainly seen during a struggle with one of the men when the being wants to suck his blood)

[www.goodreads.com]
[en.wikisource.org]

Minicthulhu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Today I finished a short novel called "In The
> Dwellings of The Wilderness" (1904) by Catherine
> Bryson Taylor. It tales a story about excavations
> in a lost city (in Egypt?) that has been buried
> under the desert sands for hundred and hundred
> years. The main characters come across an
> underground chamber with the door blocked up by
> the original builders and once they are inside
> they find a hideous object lying on the ground
> which turns out to be the mummy of a princess with
> a very bad reputation. After opening the chamber,
> strange things begin to happen, some of the men
> disappear without a trace, there are strange
> hallucinations on the part of those who come too
> close to the chamber and there is something (of
> course, it is the mummy come alive) prowling about
> at night which has definite vampirish tendencies
> (which is plainly seen during a struggle with one
> of the men when the being wants to suck his blood)
>
>
> [www.goodreads.com]
> e-dwellings-of-the-wilderness?from_search=true&fro
> m_srp=true&qid=BinnD5NYos&rank=2
> [en.wikisource.org]
> _the_Wilderness

I never heard of this one, and it looks like a fit. Thank you.

Blood-lust (1922) by Dion Fortune.

I mention the story though I am not sure if it "technically" meets your criteria about vampirism.

Minicthulhu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Blood-lust (1922) by Dion Fortune.
>
> I mention the story though I am not sure if it
> "technically" meets your criteria about vampirism.


Thank you. I shall have to check it out.

I've been meaning to post, since I just found 2 more entries:

- "The Picture Bedroom" (1840), by Dalton [maybe Richard Harris Dalton Barham]. The word "vampire" is never used, but what with the incisions on the neck, the nocturnal visitations, the loss of vigor of the victims, the conclusion is unavoidable. Features some vampire fiction tropes that I had thought were originated by "Varney the Vampire", but this predates "Varney" by 6 years.

- "An authenticated Vampire Story" (1909) by Dr. Franz Hartmann. Published by an occultist in the OCCULT REVIEW magazine.

The Vampire (1901) by Hugh Raymond McCrae.

[www.isfdb.org]

Minicthulhu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Vampire (1901) by Hugh Raymond McCrae.
>
> [www.isfdb.org]


Thanks for that one. I have not found the full text yet, but from what I have seen it feels surprisingly modern for 1901. Maybe it is because he is a bohemian.

Frank Norris's retelling of a dramatic episode in the medieval Icelandic saga of Grettir refers to an undead attacker as a "vampire," but this isn't justified by what the saga tells about him. Norris's version was published in 1903.

[storyoftheweek.loa.org]

Dale Nelson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Frank Norris's retelling of a dramatic episode in
> the medieval Icelandic saga of Grettir refers to
> an undead attacker as a "vampire," but this isn't
> justified by what the saga tells about him.
> Norris's version was published in 1903.
>
> [storyoftheweek.loa.org]-
> thorhall-stead.html

Thanks. I mentioned Sabine Baring-Gould's 1863 version of this story, which he titled "Glámr", on page 2 of this thread.

Baring-Gould also uses the word "vampire". This is not necessarily wrong -- but it does not fit my criteria for this thread, as there is no mention of blood drinking. Or, at most, there is a very distant hint of blood drinking, in the girl who grows gradually pale and slowly dies. Glámr also has an aversion to sunlight.

Here's a link to Baring-Gould's version of the tale:

[multoghost.files.wordpress.com]

I remember a vague impression that it was faithful to the source, Grettir's Saga, but I can't now recall if I checked carefully.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 25 Mar 23 | 04:47AM by Platypus.

Today I read a short story THE AMULET FROM HELL (Weird Tales, 1935) by Robert Leonard Russell about a vampiric being from Greek superstition called "vrykolokas". I am not sure if it meets the crieteria but the monster definitely shares some conspicuous characteristics with classic vampires. Here is a part of the story in which one of the characters describes it:

In a few minutes Jachini was back, carrying a small, black-bound volume. Without a word, he sat down and began to turn through it. I caught a momentary glimpse of the title page: the name of the book was Vampyrs. At length Pietro found the section he had sought, and he began to read the queer sentences aloud.
"The vrykolokas of Greek superstition," he read in his rich, scarcely accented voice, "is the undead body of some exceedingly vicious mortal. It lives not, yet is not dead, existing on fresh blood of hapless men. Unlike the true vampire, it is not shut within a coffin by day, but is then listless and inactive, especially if it has fed the night previous. Not like other vampires, the vrykolokas eats of the bodies of its victims when all blood is exhausted.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 16 May 23 | 07:41AM by Minicthulhu.

Minicthulhu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Today I read a short story THE AMULET FROM HELL
> (Weird Tales, 1935) by Robert Leonard Russell
> about a vampiric being from Greek superstition
> called "vrykolokas". I am not sure if it meets the
> crieteria but the monster definitely shares some
> conspicuous characteristics with classic vampires.
> Here is a part of the story in which one of the
> characters describes it:
>
> In a few minutes Jachini was back, carrying a
> small, black-bound volume. Without a word, he sat
> down and began to turn through it. I caught a
> momentary glimpse of the title page: the name of
> the book was Vampyrs. At length Pietro found the
> section he had sought, and he began to read the
> queer sentences aloud.
> "The vrykolokas of Greek superstition," he read in
> his rich, scarcely accented voice, "is the undead
> body of some exceedingly vicious mortal. It lives
> not, yet is not dead, existing on fresh blood of
> hapless men. Unlike the true vampire, it is not
> shut within a coffin by day, but is then listless
> and inactive, especially if it has fed the night
> previous. Not like other vampires, the vrykolokas
> eats of the bodies of its victims when all blood
> is exhausted.

Thank you, Minicthulhu. Nice find. Actual title is "The Amulet of Hell", and I found it on archive.org. I'd say it is definitely a corpse-creature, not only because of its mummified appearance, but also because the text twice classifies it as "undead". The text does distinguish it from the "true vampire", but this for reasons distinct from the criteria I have adopted for this thread.

The Vampire of Kaldenstein (1938) by Frederick Cowles.

[www.isfdb.org]

Minicthulhu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Vampire of Kaldenstein (1938) by Frederick
> Cowles.
>
> [www.isfdb.org]

Thank you. I enjoyed that one. Very derivative of the Jonathan Harker episode in Dracula, but fun nonetheless.

- "The Horror of Abbot's Grange" (1936) by Frederick Cowles

Seems to be part of a trend of vampires who haunt paintings, while still being in some sense from the grave. See also (IIRC) "The Picture in the Room", "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward", "The Room in the Tower", (IIRC) "The Oval Portrait". I'm not counting cases where non-magical paintings merely document the vampire's unnatural longevity, as in "Carmilla", "Varney the Vampire", and the horror soap opera "Dark Shadows".

The Picture Bedroom (1840) by Dalton.

Minicthulhu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Picture Bedroom (1840) by Dalton.


Thank you!
A very curious story that must be relevant to the history of the genre. I'm surprised it is not better known. I thought it was already on the list because I have discussed it somewhere. I guess not here.
IIRC, it never actually uses the word "vampire" by any spelling, which may be why it gets overlooked.


This was the story I was trying to remember in my previous post, that I misremembered as "The Picture in the Room".

I read it yesterday and enjoyed it, as I do most of the broad supernatural genre.

It has that narrative frame, which seemed to be a common device for supernatural stories. At first I was put off by the very clumsy dialog, but as soon as the tale proper began, I thought the style was good enough, but unskilled.

The tale certainly used the neck wounds device. So it was familiar with the vampire trope.

I was not sure of the details of the resolution with the fleshly corpse in the vault. I'm not sure it was believable even in the context of supernatural literature. There's no precedent that I'm aware of for shooting a portrait in the head, and later having the corporeal subject of the same portrait turn up dead near his own grave, giving the appearance of a normal human body of flesh and blood.

I suspect that the whole thing was a "confounded lie from beginning to end"...which would make the story a simple fireside tall tale, like with Dunsany's Jorkens tales, with no actual supernatural element.

--Sawfish

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The food at the new restaurant is awful, but at least the portions are large."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Vampyre (1850) by Elizabeth Ellet.

Minicthulhu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Vampyre (1850) by Elizabeth Ellet.


Thank you for that one. I had not heard of it.