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Defanged and Desirable: An Examination of Violence and the Lesbian Vampire Narrative

Graham, Chelsea
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1460127837

Abstract Details

2016, Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, English/Literature.
The vampire, like any sort of Gothic monster, operates as a conduit for various societal pressures. However, the vampire is seen as particularly adaptable in how it restructures itself as a figure of fear in multiple time periods. This work examines the various forms and fears the lesbian vampire embodies and why society is continually fascinated with such a figure. One of the key texts in my project is Sheridan LeFanu’s novella, Carmilla, published in 1872. LeFanu’s story predates Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and is one of the first major explorations of the lesbian vampire trope including victimology, seduction tactics, and even popular adversaries. Although there are many adaptations which feature a lesbian vampire, my project will be limited to Scott’s film The Hunger, produced in 1983, and season one of the recent Youtube series, Carmilla, produced in 2014. In these various adaptations, I have noted a cycle of violence surrounding the vampire, her adversaries, and victims. What is interesting is how this cycle seems to change with each adaptation of the lesbian vampire’s story depending on the time the story is set in. What is interesting about this trend of shifting cycles and loci of violence is what happens to them when society begins to accept the lesbian vampire and no longer fears her.
Piya Lapinski, Dr. (Advisor)
Stephannie Gearhart, Dr. (Committee Member)
102 p.
Film Studies; Folklore; Gender Studies; Glbt Studies; Literature
vampires; queer vampires; literature; film; Gothic; violence; lesbianism; lesbian vampires; Carmilla; The Hunger; Sheridan LeFanu

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Graham, C. (2016). Defanged and Desirable: An Examination of Violence and the Lesbian Vampire Narrative [Master's thesis, Bowling Green State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1460127837

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Graham, Chelsea. Defanged and Desirable: An Examination of Violence and the Lesbian Vampire Narrative. 2016. Bowling Green State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1460127837.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Graham, Chelsea. "Defanged and Desirable: An Examination of Violence and the Lesbian Vampire Narrative." Master's thesis, Bowling Green State University, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1460127837

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

bgsu1460127837
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© 2016, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Bowling Green State University and OhioLINK.