Thoughts on vampires

Stef took me to see Twilight Friday. Faith got super into the books and kept telling me I needed to read them. I've been so spoiled with the deliciousness of Harry Potter and so busy lately that I didn't want to take the time out to get into another huge series. Also, I knew that I didn't want to read the books before I saw the movie. HP is being produced by a huge company. Twilight is not. I wasn't sure what to expect. I ended up liking it, on the whole. Besides, it's about vampires, which is an interest to me (see: Buffy obsession). There were parts of the movie I wish were done differently. Stef gave me the book, and I finished it in a day. I'm really glad I didn't read the book first. The movie would have been a huge disappointment.

Anyway, it got me to thinking why people like vampire stuff and the differences in reasons vs. the differences in gender. Here is my hypothesis:

Men are attracted to the power and primal aspects. Increased strength, agility, almost nearly indestructible. Women fall at their feet. And usually those women have heaping amounts of cleavage. Plus, it's very animalistic. Seriously, go to your google finder at the top of your page and type in "animalistic" then hit the space bar. The first option that comes up is "animalistic vampire". They are hunters, which is what we were originally. And in a lot of ways, still are. Vampires are sort of like James Bond, except even cooler. They are super slick, crazy smart, and get any girl they want.

Something completely different appeals to women. It's the love aspect. It's so funny b/c I overheard so many conversations at the movie with girls quoting their favorite lines or squealing about their favorite parts. They were solidly about the same thing. Love. Each vampire franchise is different. In Twilight they have to be ripped apart and burned to be destroyed, but they can go in the sun. In Buffy, a quick stake to the heart does the trick, but religious objects don't kill them (they smoke a little). In From Dusk Til Dawn, holy water makes them 'splode. But the one thing across the board is: it's unnatural for a vampire to love a human. It's against instinct and nature.

That's why women are drawn to it. For a vampire to love a human, that's got to be pretty damn strong love. They are immortal, so not only do they have a pick from every woman in the world, they have a pick from every woman across time. That's a lot. To be singled out from that, to have him love you so much that it goes against everything...well, it's almost like Romeo and Juliet. A timeless love story where they loved each other so much they died. This also represents the ultimate commitment. If he turns you so you can be together, there will be no "death do you part." You will be together forever. That's how women want to be loved: balls out.

So, I think that's why, no matter what the particular mythology, vampires appeal both to men and women on a very basic level, but in very different ways.