Vampires: The Devil’s Minions

Posted by kitperriman on May 26, 2022

The vampire is one of the archetypal embodiments of evil. These cursed, damned creatures are claimed by Satan, and act as his followers to lure human souls away from God. For this reason, they cannot tolerate any reminders of what they have lost – crucifixes, holy water, rosaries, consecrated ground – and are forced to wander in the dark realm of night alongside the dead and undead. Traditionally thought to be the reanimated evil souls of witches, suicides, and malevolent spirits, these corpses prey on the living in search of gratification and blood. So how did this weird form of demonic possession becomes so sexy in the popular imagination?

Our literary fascination goes back the nineteenth century when Gothic horror writers began exploring the vampire myth. Perhaps the most influential book was Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1897), which has since defined the legend for many generations. Having spent seven years exploring Transylvanian folklore, Stoker based his demonic character on Vlad the Impaler (Vlad II, Dracula of Wallachia) who killed 40,000 – 100,000 enemies by impaling them on wooden poles – providing us with the method of ending a vampire’s reign by driving a wooden stake through the heart. Vlad’s other atrocities included roasting children and serving them to their mothers, burning entire villages to the ground, and making men eat the severed breasts of their women. Interestingly, the name Dracul can mean both dragon and devil. But Stoker’s villain is much more attractive and sophisticated. His Dracula is a worldly aristocratic count who skillfully stalks and seduces his prey.

During the twentieth century, the TV show Dark Shadows featured a sympathetic monster called Barnabas (1967). In Interview With A Vampire Anne Rice introduced the sensual character, Lestat (1976). And before long the disgusting blood-sucking creature of nightmares turned into a metaphor for redemption. If the sad, lost vampire can be saved – by love or compassion – surely there is hope for everyone! This also seems to be the hook in books like the Twilight series.

Today, the vampire has become a sex symbol, the hero of YA fiction and cable TV. But this is not a modern phenomenon. Ever since Eve was tricked in the Garden of Eden, the devil has been portrayed as being both attractive and seductive. He does not lure Eve into temptation in human form – he chooses to appear as the phallic snake, a reminder that woman is lustful and open to the sins of the flesh.

When Eve eats from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil she dooms the human race to mortality, and in aligning herself with Satan she becomes the prototype witch. But when European mythology made evil the polar opposite to good, it seems the devil came up with an intriguing alternative. Instead of God’s promise of eternal life, Satan offers immortality on earth through becoming one of his minions. Vampirism is an attractive solution to the Christian rigors of heaven or the painful tortures of hell. And so, I would argue, the Dracula myth was born.

Who does not want to overcome death and live forever? Most of us have a secret craving for love, immortality, power, and freedom. The vampire realm requires an initial sacrifice of blood to the master, but thereafter there are no punishments or rules, no aging and pain, no guilt or taboos. Surrendering to the darkness is erotic, exciting, mysterious, and adventurous. The vampire remains suspended in time and the lustful soul is free to roam at will.

As modern day religion and morality changes with the times, so does our perception of good and evil. It is only natural that our mythology alters too. Few people would have found Bela Lugosi’s demonic Dracula very attractive:

But True Blood’s Eric Northman is a whole different beast!

Sources:

Wikipedia: “Dracula” – “Vampire” – “Vlad the Impaler”

Dawidziak, David. “When Did Vampires Turn From Monsters To Sex Symbols?”

Stoker, Bram. Dracula. New York: Penguin, 1990.

(Pictures: Public Domain)

Lilith and Eve: Part Two

Posted by kitperriman on February 16, 2022

(Painting: John Roddam Spencer Stanhope)

In the Christian version of Genesis, Adam (meaning literally “man”) is the perfect model of strength and beauty. He donates a rib to create a submissive partner, the naïve Eve. They dwell in the Garden of Eden with two special trees – the Tree of Knowledge (which gives the wisdom to uncover good and evil) and the Tree of Life (which grants immortality). Eve is tempted by the devil (in the guise of the serpent) to eat from the forbidden Tree of Knowledge and is then expelled from paradise alongside her mate, cutting off the Tree of Life and making them both mortal.

Eve, the first woman deceived by a sweet-talking male, becomes the original mother of mankind. In the beginning she is a daughter of nature – a creature half-way between animal and man – beautiful, sensual, emotional, but also fickle, stupid, and weak. This archetypal woman soon becomes the victim, the first person seduced by Satan and therefore the first witch. Indeed, in early iconography, Eve is even physically linked with the serpent through her long twisting hair.

Eve sins in multiple ways – by disobeying God and rejecting divine authority, going her own way, and in seeking the wisdom of the male Gods – implying that all the evil, death, and suffering in the world comes from disobeying your master. Naïve woman is blamed for the Fall, a typical psychological projection onto a convenient scapegoat.

At some point Lilith became entwined with Eve in the minds of the early Christian commentators. Instead of a masculine Satan being culpable for Eve’s ruin, Lilith is associated with the snake in Genesis 3 – a female demon who tempts Eve into rebellion. Even John Milton alludes to the “snake witch” in Paradise Lost. Thereafter, the gullible Eve is portrayed as a calculating, evil, seductress, and the source of man’s carnal desire.

And because the first woman committed the primal sin, all females were forever to be held accountable. For centuries they were considered subservient, lustful, untrustworthy, base, unintelligent, and sly. Small wonder that so many of the witches executed in the Burning Times were female!

Sources:

Brunel, Pierre. Companion to Literary Myths, Heroes, and Archetypes. London and New York: Routledge, 1996.

Merriam-Webster’s Encyclopedia of World Religions. Massachusetts: Merriam-Webster, 1999.

Witcombe, Christopher: “Eve and the Identity of Women” (7) http://witcombe.sbc.edu/eve-women/7evelilith.html

Lilith and Eve: Part One

Posted by kitperriman on February 15, 2022

(Painting: Dante Gabriel Rossetti)

According to the Jewish Midrash’s explanation for the two separate accounts of the Creation Story, Adam’s first wife was a woman called Lilith. She was made of the same soil as man and therefore was his equal. But when Adam tried to dominate Lilith she rebelled, fled the Garden of Eden, and abandoned her mate to consort with more submissive demons instead. So God created another mate for Adam and called her Eve.

From the Sixth Century BC, Lilith was portrayed as a female demon who killed infants and threatened women in childbirth, and perhaps because of this association the scriptures began partnering Lilith with Samael (Satan), making her the Queen of Evil. Her Hebrew name translates into “night creature,” “night monster,” “night hag,” and “screech owl” – and only the three angels Senoy, Sansenoy, and Semangelof can protect against her wicked powers.

In the Middle Ages the Catholic Church identified Lilith (and her daughters, the Lilim) with female succubae – demons who copulate with sleeping men, causing their erotic dreams. Contrasting with the pure, submissive, Holy Mother, Lilith was a disobedient, lustful sinner who used her sexuality to seduce and ruin men. Her evil stems from being willful – a dangerous threat to patriarchal order and stability.

Mirrors were the direct entrance into Lilith’s realm. Vanity allowed Lilith and her daughters to enter an unsuspecting maiden through her eyes, then lure her into all manner of wild, promiscuous behavior.

In some cultures Lilith is the wind-witch. She brings storms, sickness, and nighttime predators. She is bird-like – often depicted with talons and wings – and the name Lil is also associated with the Sumerian word for “wind”‘ “air,” or “storm.”

Today, however, some wiccans and occultists worship Lilith as the “first mother.”

Sources:

Brunel, Pierre. Companion to Literary Myths, Heroes, and Archetypes. London and New York: Routledge, 1996.

Merriam-Webster’s Encyclopedia of World Religions. Massachusetts: Merriam-Webster, 1999.

Witcombe, Christopher: “Eve and the Identity of Women” (7) http://witcombe.sbc.edu/eve-women/7evelilith.html

Kit Perriman

The Hill – A Historical Novel About Witches

Tag Archives: Eve

Vampires: The Devil’s Minions

Lilith and Eve: Part Two

Lilith and Eve: Part One