English Vampire Fiction - Case Study Example

College: Essay 2 John William Polidoris ‘The Vampyre’ John William Polidori lived in the 18th century and is particularly remembered for his remarkable contributions to the vampire genre. He had a short life, yet managed to have an impact not only on the world’s vampire literature, but also on different societies of the world. Born in 1795 in England, John worked as a personal physician to Lord Byron. Lord Byron used to enjoy the company of Polidori and used to go with him on his long trips. Polidori was also a recognized English writer apart from being a physician. During the 1816 summer, Polidori had accompanied Lord Byron during a visit to Geneva and in the course of the visit, Polidori together with some few other writers, were involved in a writing competition that entailed writing good stories about ghosts. Polidori focused his story plainly on his personal life experiences and encounters with Lord Byron (Macdonald and Scherf 50-55). He tried to associate the character of Lord Byron to that of a vampire something he describes in the story as “a creature with supernatural powers” (Bainbridge 24-26). As a result of a clash in personality, Lord Byron fired Polidori as his personal physician and some years down the line, Polidori committed suicide following accrual of gambling debts and depression at the age of twenty five (Macdonald and Scherf 288-295). Nevertheless, Polidori’s work was later published and became the foundation of the work of other famous scholars such as Bram Stoker and Anne Rice. ‘The Vampyre’ as an instrument of social criticism Social criticism occurs in the different societies of the world to further explain on the existence of some malicious conditions within the social structures of the society (Ahuvia 12). Social criticism, therefore, gives an explanation as to why certain conditions prevail in the different societies. ‘The Vampyre’ was actually the first work on English vampire fiction. This particular story gave way to the modern aristocratic vampire fiction. Polidori’s work is, therefore, iconic in the history of the world for it brought about a creativity that has been embraced and endured for centuries. It has further led to emergence of different myths in the different communities of the world regarding the blood-sucking creatures that are said to exist. For example, in Trinidad, there is a myth that there is woman who sheds off her skin at night and moves through cracks in walls into residential houses to suck blood from helpless donors (Shepherd 2). ‘The vampyre’ story had a lot of influence on the Decadent movement that was witnessed in Europe especially in the Western Europe in the 19th century. This movement made an impact on the Victorian culture through borrowing from Polidori’s work. Therefore, the Victorian way of life was transformed literally through the vampires Polidori created. Further, the story influenced Romanticism; a movement that culminated in Europe in the late eighteenth century and nineteenth century. Romanticism is remembered for its revolt against the aristocracy of the political and the social norms of the society. Romanticism was further associated with Radical movements and liberalism that were later witnessed in the United Kingdom in the late nineteenth century. Emma Thompson’s screenplay Sense and Sensibility Part A Everyone who reads the novel ‘sense and sensibility’ adequately appreciates the genius work of Emma Thompson and magnificent work of Jane Austen. Even though it is hard to understand the entire novel well as a result of the language that was initially used, the novel adequately outlines and provides explanation for some of the key incidences that took place in United Kingdom especially in the eighteenth and the nineteenth centuries. The novel has therefore been used by the different scholars of the world to judge on the different events that were witnessed by the world in both the 18th and the 19th centuries. All through the novel, it is evident that wealth and occupation were the main sources of social stratification in the English society. The story is therefore based on the period when England was shifting from a land-based and agrarian economy to a more industrial cash-based economy. The English society was then disintegrated into certain social groups in terms of wealth, power and economic statuses (Gallup and Sachs 25). Women had no place in this society that is the reason why when Mr. Dashwood dies, he left all his wealth to his elder son and not his wife Mrs. Daashwood (Austen 6-7).Some women however enjoyed some sort of equality for they worked alongside the husbands in running the family businesses. The society was therefore made of different classes of individuals; aristocrats Middle Level and Lower Level individuals. Every class had its rightful place in the society. The aristocrats were in control of the wealth of the society. Basically, men had to leave their homes in pursuit of better jobs to sustain their families. All through the novel, a woman is a weaker gender in the society and therefore not capable of taking certain responsibilities in the community. The main work of a woman is reduced to household chores and taking care of the children. This is a form of a tradition ethic that overrated the masculine traits while at the same time undermining the feminine traits (Sterba, 40-50). It is no wonder, Elinor, Margaret and Marianne had to get married since this was the only way for them to establish a good life. This novel adequately featured real incidents that were taking place in the English society including the economic inequalities that existed between men and women and the problems of unemployment as a result of shift into more industrial-based economy. Part B Pastoral scenes to revealing the antagonism between country and city life The screenplay actually exaggerated the wealth of the Dashwoods to create a real picture of the poverty the family later faced in their life. Having moved from the city to a rural place, the family found the countryside life challenging. Thompson uses nature, paintings and the terrain of the land to adequately distinguish the city life from the rural life. The panoramic nature of the countryside implies how the eighteenth century was beautiful and such a romantic period despite the female oppression that was adamant. The life in the countryside is revealed as simple, quiet, interesting and quite adventurous. An impression of a beautiful English countryside is revealed in a scene where Elinor is riding on her own horse while enjoying the nature. Thompson dislike of grandiose architecture In the 18th century, England as a nation wanted to adequately transform the English society. As a result of trade between England and the nations of the Far East, the English countryside adopted various styles of architecture. These architectures would further have a lot of influence on the cultures of England. The ‘Sense and Sensibility’ film adequately covered the rural and the urban life of England in the 18th century. Thomson brings out the picture of the grandiose architecture in the rural areas as insensible and boring. The houses in Barton Cottage had nothing to be compared to with house the family had lived in when in Norland Park. Settling in was not easy for the family. Thompson further tries to make the houses look old fashioned with the Wainscot and chair rails (Austen 229-235). Sponte sua themes and labor Back in Norland Park, the family used to enjoy services from the servants who were employed to work in the house. Men had to work in the factories to meet the needs of their families. This was quite the opposite when the family arrives at Barton Cottage. There are no servants employed to take care of the members of the family and there are lot of goods that do not necessarily need to be bought. Here, Thompson tries to bring out a picture of the countryside as more appealing than the city life. Everything is freely given by the nature; pasture of the livestock, woods, water with lot of fish in it and a fertile earth (Graham 7). The life in the countryside is therefore incomparable to the city life. Part C Both the sense and sensibility were quite significant qualities in a person’s character in the English society in the 18th and the 19th centuries. During this era, men were seen as the superior members while women were the inferior ones. A man was viewed as more rational and practically intelligent as compared to a woman who could easily be influenced emotionally. In the film ‘sense and sensibility’ by Jane Austen, the two qualities are well portrayed by the character of the two heroines; Elinor and Marianne. Elinor was stronger and more realistic. This is evident when she found out about Edward and Lucy (Austen 144-145). She does not breakdown into tears and instead she just feels sad that Edward did not take the chance of being happy in a marriage with her. She knows how to control her emotions and she even shares it with her sister Marianne. On the other hand, Marianne gets heartbroken by the Willoughby incident and she really gets emotional about it (Austen 62). Elinor therefore represents ‘sense’ in the film while Marianne represents ‘sensibility’. All through the play, ‘sense’ is associated more with the masculine character; a strong sense of reasoning and composure. ‘Sensibility’ on the other hand is more associated with the feminine character; weak, meek and emotional. As the play comes to an end, it is evident that the heroines; Elinor and Marianne had struck a balance between ‘sense’ and ‘sensibility’ in their lives. Elinor went on to marry Edward who was initially engaged to Lucy. Edward in this case is an element representing the ‘sensibility’ male counterparts in the society. On the other hand, Marianne married Colonel Brandon a character of ‘sense’. He appeals dull but he is one of the romantic characters in the play ‘sense and sensibility’. Colonel Brandon falls in love with Marianne the first time he sees her (Austen 82). Work Cited Ahuvia, Aaron, C. Social Criticism of Advertising: On the Role of Literary Theory and the use of Data. Journal of Advertising, 27.1 (1998): pp. 1-20. Austen, Jane. Sense and Sensibility. Wordsworth Editions Ltd. Herts, 1997. ISBN 13: 9781853260162. Bainbridge, Simon. Lord Ruthvens Power: Polidoris The Vampyre, Doubles and the Byronic Imagination .n.d. Web. 19 January 2015. http://l-adam-mekler.com/bainbridge_polidori.pdf (17th Jan, 2015). Gallup, J., L and Sachs, J. ‘Geography and Economic Development’, in B. Pleskovic and J. E. Stiglitz (eds), Annual World Bank Conference on Development Economics. 1998. World Bank, Washington DC. Graham, Peter, W. From Mansfield Park to Gosford Park: The English Country House from Austen to Altman. The Jane Austen Journal, 24 (2002): 1-12. Macdonald, D., L. and Scherf, Kathleen, Eds. The Vampyre and Ernestus Berchtold; or, The Modern Oedipus. Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press, 2007. ISBN: 10-1551117452. Shepherd, Annie. The Evolution of the Vampire Fiction and Popular Culture. (n.d.): Pp. 1-10. Web. 19 January 2015. https://www.lagrange.edu/resources/pdf/citations/2010/11Sheperd_English.pdf (17th Jan, 2015). Sterba, James P. ed. Ethics: Classical Western Texts in Feminist and Multicultural Perspectives, New York: Oxford University Pres, 2000. Read More