So after a complete emotional melt down this after noon, I've decided the easiest thing to do is a topic with conflicting evidence. Right?

Whatever.

Watergate scandal. Thoughts? Better? Worse?

i seriously hate all forms of major works right now, they're sending me insane.

I have made

No progress since my last post.

Success! No, wait.. it's not.
Whatever.

Anyone want to hit up state library wednesday?

Question for Extension History

My focus question for this course will be developed from the topic of Oral History with components of History in the Media, as I'll be exploring not only oral myths and legends, but how they were portrayed over time in films, novels, poetry and art.

My question:

How has the image of the Vampire expressed in oral history and folklore transformed into the image we perceive through Modern medias? How does this change of image reflect the society of the time?



*awaits puns nervously*

Vlad the Impaler

As a few of the Extension English people know, one of the most commonly known images and ideas surrounding vampires comes from Bram Stokers Dracula, arguably one of the most well renowned novels about vampires. The nature of this story does hold some historical significance however.


Introduction

Most authorities believe the character of Dracula in Bram Stoker’s novel was based upon the historical figure Vlad Tepes (pronounced tse-pesh), who intermittently ruled an area of the Balkans called Wallachia in the mid 15th century. He was also called by the names Vlad III, Vlad Dracula and Vlad the Impaler. The word Tepes stands for "impaler" and was so coined because of Vlad’s propensity to punish victims by impaling them on stakes, then displaying them publicly to frighten his enemies and to warn would-be transgressors of his strict moral code. He is credited with killing between 40,000 to 100,000 people in this fashion.
Origin of the name "Dracula"

King Sigismund of Hungary, who became the Holy Roman Emperor in 1410, founded a secret fraternal order of knights called the Order of the Dragon to uphold Christianity and defend the Empire against the Ottoman Turks. Its emblem was a dragon, wings extended, hanging on a cross. Vlad III’s father (Vlad II) was admitted to the Order around 1431 because of his bravery in fighting the Turks. From 1431 onward Vlad II wore the emblem of the order and later, as ruler of Wallachia, his coinage bore the dragon symbol.

The word for dragon in Romanian is "drac" and "ul" is the definitive article. Vlad III’s father thus came to be known as "Vlad Dracul," or "Vlad the dragon." In Romanian the ending "ulea" means "the son of". Under this interpretation, Vlad III thus became Vlad Dracula, or "the son of the dragon." (The word "drac" also means "devil" in Romanian. The sobriquet thus took on a double meaning for enemies of Vlad Tepes and his father.)*


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* http://www.donlinke.com/drakula/vlad.htm

Vampirism is a disease?

So speaking in general terms, vampirism was something passed from vampire to human either through a bite, or through the humans consumption of vampire blood. However in more modern times, we can see the influence of science coming in on this myth through the V5 virus.

== Virus ==

A possible medical explanation for the physiological differences between vampires and humans comes in the form of a virus called V5 ("Vee Five"), not to be mistaken for HIV5. "Viral vampires," as they are called, have been known to experience anemia, increased night vision or sensitivity to light, a stronger immune system or slowed aging process, and in some cases, more acute psychic capabilities. This would explain the propagation of much vampire folklore.

V5 can be passed on to a child via the mother, or from an exchange with an infected person, much like HIV or the flu. The virus alters the recipient's DNA, but theoretically, he or she must have an ideal blood chemistry and relatively weak immune system to allow the change.*

Ah, is that so? So vampirism is something similar to a cold? No blood sucking, no brides and sons of satan running around slaughtering the innocent? You may be thinking this is far fetched... You are most certainly right. It's a fake. the V5 virus is NOT a form of human evolution, it holds no links to turning a human into a vampire and most likely the disease itself doesn't exist. Still interesting how in medieval times the vampire myth was promoted so the churches could keep control of people and the hierarchy influenced how the folklore was told, as todays society has used science to try and promote the phenomnia as real.




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* http://www.helium.com/items/675909-the-lifestyle-choice-of-being-a-vampire
http://www.sodahead.com/living/v5-virus-do-you-belive-in-it/blog-123429/

Books Books Books

I'll be hitting up the library soon, not sure how much information I'll find on vampirism.

Apparently though, this is an amazing book.. worth getting??

http://www.amazon.com/Vampires-Vampirism-Montague-Summers/dp/0486439968/ref=pd_sim_b_4

I'm never going to Romania.

Romania
Romanian vampires were known as moroi (from a Slavic word meaning "nightmare") and strigoi, with the latter classified as either living or dead. Live strigoi were described as living witches with two hearts or souls, sometimes both.[40] Strigoi were said to have the ability to send out their souls at night to meet with other strigoi and consume the blood of livestock and neighbours. Similarly, dead strigoi were described as reanimated corpses that also sucked blood and attacked their living family. Live strigoi became revenants after their death, but there were also many other ways of a person becoming a vampire. A person born with a caul, an extra nipple, a tail, or extra hair[41] was doomed to become a vampire. The same fate applied to the seventh child in any family if all of his or her previous siblings were of the same sex, as well as someone born too early or someone whose mother had encountered a black cat crossing her path. If a pregnant woman did not eat salt or was looked upon by a vampire or a witch, her child would also become a vampire. So too would a child born out of wedlock, although many of these superstitions rose from the clergy in order to keep their subjects compliant. Others who were at risk of becoming vampires were those who died an unnatural death or before baptism. Finally, a person with red hair and blue eyes was seen as a potential strigoi.

Well, theres one holiday destination I can strike off my list.

oooh, vampires everywhere :D

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire_folklore_by_region

The folklore extends SO BROADLY across the ancient world, however what I've learnt is that the modern vampire is based upon early 18th century conceptions from Southeast Europe.

Ancient beliefs

Tales of the undead consuming the blood or flesh of living beings have been found in nearly every culture around the world for many centuries.[3] Today we know these entities predominantly as vampires, but in ancient times, the term vampire did not exist; blood drinking and similar activities were attributed to demons or spirits who would eat flesh and drink blood; even the devil was considered synonymous with the vampire.[4] Almost every nation has associated blood drinking with some kind of revenant or demon, from the ghouls of Arabia to the goddess Sekhmet of Egypt. Indeed, some of these legends could have given rise to the Eastern European folklore, though they are not strictly considered vampires by historians when using today's definitions.[5][6]

In my assessment I'm not sure how many cultures I should delve into for the comparative study. I want to be able to display some similarities of where the vampire myth we know today originates from, and some differences and why they might have come about.

The Evolution of the Vampire

My confirmed topic choice, I'm so excited! So many instances over time has the image of the vampire been used in literary forms to convey different social standards and images !

http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/vampires_movies/60392

This website is an awful good read, exactly what I wanted. It also touches on ancient perceptions of vampires based on the culture the folklore came from, like Malaysia verses northern Europe. It also explores the vampires appearance in film and book much more extensively than the concept of the vampire itself, which can prove to be very helpful.

I'm thinking for printing out my blog, I'll print out the articles as well, I may as well have them for reference and quoting, but I'll have to ensure I put a bibliography down for each site so I can reference them well.


Note: Sorry for the onslaught of posts, I just got really inspired today to do some history and I was just on a roll. Not that anyone will really read any of this :)

I'm on a ROLL today

http://www.tampabay.com/features/media/article870160.ece

A timeline from the St Petersburg times online about the change vampires have undergone over time. It's brilliant, but not as scathing towards Twilight as I would have preferred. It does mention True Blood though, and I like that show...

even though the vampires should be more fearsome ._.

I like the introduction of the article the best:

"For our money, there is no cooler creature in pop culture history than the vampire. • Infinitely adaptable, mysterious and powerful, vampires are the hip kids of the zeitgeist.They dominate humanity while standing apart from it, embodying all things forbidden and seductive in one conflict-laced package. • Little surprise, then, that the form each ghoul takes through history says a lot about its time and place. • "It's ironic: They say vampires don't cast a reflection, but vampires really are a reflection . . . of society," said Eric Nuzum, who drank his own blood, watched 605 vampire movies and took a Romanian vampire tour to write his 2007 book, The Dead Travel Fast: Stalking Vampires from Nosferatu to Count Chocula."

I'm liking the sound of this book by Eric Nuzum, I'm going to look into ordering this. I'm thinking vampires might become my folklore focus, it gives me a chance to express my *ahem* distaste for a few things via my blog.

Guess who is extremely excited about this task now? :3

I was thinking

A fantastic example of myths transgressing into modern culture would be that of the Vampire. A once feared and taboo topic becoming a cult hit and in some cases, a sex symbol is utterly astounding. The advancement* of mankind has turned that which once struck terror into peoples hearts into one that emotes other.. ahem, strong feelings. A little strange isn't it. I suppose the waning influence of religious tyranny, scientific advancements and the more cynical nature of man has reduced what was once a fearsome creature into a sparkling ninny in a tree**. Wikipedia (an unreliable source but a good springboard regardless) notes,

Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence (generally in the form of blood) of living creatures regardless of them being undead or a living person. In folkloric tales, vampires often visited loved ones and caused mischief or deaths in the neighbourhoods they inhabited when they were alive. They wore shrouds and were often described as bloated and of ruddy or dark countenance.

So how then, has our pink faced, fat, blood-slurping, mischievous undead vampire turned into a vegetarian, sparkling, cold as ice and pale as a ghost whiney little prat? A creature once famous for causing mass hysteria, the blame for unexplained happenings, a minion of the DEVIL for goodness sake, has becoming nothing more than a big wuss. That glitters.


As much as I denote and despise Twilight, I regrettably say this could possibly be a good topic for my Ext. History project. Surely you all approve of any assignment bent on mocking Twilight to the fullest extent, no?

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*I'm hardly counting Twilight as an advancement of man, if anything it's a massive regression.
** I'm looking at you, Edward Cullen, you big idiot.

Yay I'm pretty excited.

I've finally found something I'm passionate about, and I'm excited to be hitting the state library next week to check it out.
I'm most definitely going to be doing a study of Ancient and Medieval myths and either their modern counterparts or their influence on modern story telling (movies and novels).

http://www.minervaclassics.com/movimyth.htm

Another awesome website to check out ! I like how it mentions that we can either appropriate myths into a modern context / movie, or we can actually subconsciously take elements from the myths and place them in a completely different plot !

This snippet from the website I found to be particular fascinating.


Identifying the elements of myth: The Godfather and Odysseus

Blood spurting from his chest, the young Italian writhes in a dance of death, his body jerking to the rhythm of the machine gun bullets. A shark's ragged jaws open, red and mangled with the flesh of victims, and a man disappears screaming into the bloody throat. Do these scenes, from The Godfather and Jaws, represent an American myth of cruelty and violence? Or should the word "myth" be reserved for more austere and decorous tales, like those we associate with the gods and goddesses of an idealized Greek and Roman antiquity, leaving us to dismiss The Godfather and Jaws as gruesomely hypnotic stories? (A third definition of "myth" would simply say that it is "something that isn't so," which gets us off the hook without supplying an explanation.)

Many people are surprised to learn that ancient myth was often at least as violent, if not more so, than the mayhem of our modern fantasies. The Greek god Kronos castrated his father with a pruning hook, then swallowed his own children; later, he was forced to vomit them up. The accursed hero Atreus cut the children of his brother Thyestes into little pieces, then served them to their father at a banquet. So much for the austere and decorous. But mythologers today define "myth" in a more subtle and discerning way, to include both the Corleone family and the shark, and Kronos and Thyestes, as well as gentler products of the human imagination. Myth is the system of recurring patterns and themes that people use to make sense out of the world. Significantly, ancient and modern patterns often turn out to be the same, even in small details; in their universality, they seem to have an intimate connection with the way all human beings think. The Godfather, and its companion, Godfather II, have been justly praised for excellence in such technical matters as acting and direction; their popularity is enhanced by less pleasant preoccupations: a lust for violence accentuated in recent years; an obsession with the details of organized crime; a cynical belief that only small distinctions separate lawless behavior from ordinary business practice. But deeper, more archaic reasons lie back of the Mafia saga's tremendous vogue. These reasons have to do with the film's mythic content.

How interesting.

In my new exploration of folklore I may do a study of the influence of european folklore on his writing styles and stories. Here is link which proves to be very interesting :)

http://www.colorq.org/Articles/ca.aspx?d=lore&x=SE_LOTR

I Don't know if this will be my focus topic, I'm still looking around. I can't focus, so sue me ._.

I am

abandoning any hope on doing the holocaust deniers. I'm lazy, thats why.

Plus, I'm much more passionate about ancient history, particularly mythology and folklore.
Perhaps an exploration into folklore shared across different civilisations and societies?

Anyone have any idea for an angle I could put on this?