Articles

Anthony G, Roving reporter

What's Up with Vampires?

My 16-year-old sister has a problem. Ever since Twilight, True Blood and The Vampire Diaries have come to motion pictures and TV, she has been nothing but vampire crazed.

She drinks out of a Twilight cup, has a The Vampire Diaries ring, necklace and bracelet, sleeps with an Anne Stokes quilt set, and has True Blood posters everywhere. What’s next? Is she going to import a coffin from Transylvania and sleep in it? Who knows? She probably would - I wouldn’t be surprised.

One thing's for sure: the girl has issues.

If you couldn't tell, I’m not a fan of vampire and werewolf love triangles, so when I was asked to escort my sister to the Vampire Diaries conference being held at Melbourne Uni I wasn’t even close to being interested.

However, a change of heart came upon me when I thought to myself, "What is it about vampires? What’s the big deal?" This was an opportunity for me to uncover what it is about vampires that makes the mind of a 16-year-old, or any other woman, burst with Nosferatu desire.

"They Can Love Someone Properly"

Arriving at the event, which was plagued full of fans, my sister and her cult of mini-Nosferatus went about searching for their most treasured stars while I got into my research.

Approaching random people is never easy, especially if none of them want to help you out. I was quite surprised by the amount of rejections I got (I should’ve worn Calvin Klein), but rejection and reporting are like yin and yang. You get used to it. I didn’t come out empty-handed, though. Two people out of around 200 were wiling to help me out, which is better than nothing.

Rose, a student from Melbourne Uni, was kind enough to help me by giving her input on what makes vampires so appealing.

"It’s mainly the power they have," Rose said, "but also that they can love somebody properly. You see, when a vampire loves someone that love is for life. It never grows old and never grows thin. They’re also loyal and they will be there for you when you need them."

From what I gathered from Rose’s answer, the vampire’s power was only part of the reason she liked them. For her it was mainly the image of the perfect lifemate and friend.

"Paul Wesley is So Hot"

At first it didn’t occur to me to ask my sister and her friends for their input, mainly because I knew they would give a stupid answer. They did know a great deal about vampires, though, so I thought that it would be worth trying. Maybe they’d actually be straight with me.

So, guys, what is it about vampires that make them so likeable?

My Sister: Paul Wesley is so hot, I just want to wax him.

What the hell kind of answer is that? You guys said you’d be straight.

My Sister's Friend: Yeah, I know. I just want to wax his nipples.

My Sister: That’s hot.

That’s Sick!

My Sister: You mean sick as in Ian Thorpe fully sick?

Why did I even bother?

So much for that.

"They're Like the Perfect Friend"

My next interview was with Tina, an RMIT student who knew a great deal about vampires and offered me another insight.

"The big deal is that they’re awesome at everything and can pretty much do what they want," Tina said. "Their image set up in Twilight, The Vampire Diaries and True Blood makes them more appealing."

"Their abilities, the way they care for people, the way they're there for people when they need them, they're practically like the perfect friend you would want to have. It’s the display of their humanity in these shows that makes women and girls tend to fall in love with them."

"They Don't Wrinkle"

During the the Q &A session at the convention I asked Malese Jow, one of the stars of The Vampire Diaries, for her input, but for someone who played a vampire she didn’t have much to say.

"They don’t wrinkle and they're pretty much great at everything," she said. Maybe if I had organised a proper interview the answer would have been different.

A Vampire's Humanity

From my interviews with Rose and Tina, I was starting to understand why it is that girls and women adore vampires so much. Their good looks and abilities were part of the reason, but it seems that their human side makes them really stand out.

The real appeal of vampires, it seems, is the way that they swear to protect the ones they love. It's their loyalty, the way they’re there when people need them, the way that people can count on them, the way they’d risk everything for love, that makes them so popular.

Just as Tina said, it's a vampire's humanity that makes the world love them so much.

For more articles on Arts & music, check out our Articles archive.

BACK TO MORE ARTICLES