Rewrite - Vampires

The original Nosferatu was far from the idyllic life of a modern vampire. Since the idea of vampirism was first conceived, the vampire has gotten more and more beautiful and glamorous: Eternal life in the world’s most glamorous cities, free enjoyment of the night, powers far beyond mortal ability, and the pursuit of carnal pleasures. The appeal of vampires lies in their feral nature; Their potential for an uninhibited life. Modern vampires satisfy their carnal cravings for blood, sex, and excitement in the dead of night. They actively chase the decadent, sinful things that we humans have been conditioned to shun and fear. We are not to indulge in our cravings for things like alcohol, food, and drugs because of the various effects it will have on our bodies. The same shame of our bodies tames our sexual desires, as society teaches us to avoid acting on our sexual urges and that one’s sexuality is something to be ashamed of. As for the night, we have been made to believe that only danger lies in the darkness of night and that one risks injury, robbery, or rape when venturing out alone. Vampires shun the idea of human limitation, shame, or fear and just do what all humans have the desire to do: they live. They drink blood from whomever they please, they use their charms to sleep with whomever they wish, and with their power they fear no harm in the night.

This sort of life may seem to humans as the epitome of perfection- taking what one wants, acting only on desire, living an eternal life -but a new sort of perfection has emerged among modern vampires: The vegetarian vampire. Some vampires actually treasure their relationships with humans, weather they be sexual relationships, feeding, or just simple companions. They have no desire to hurt humans, despite their perceived superiority. They instead shun such labels and choose to keep a small piece of their humanity intact. Instead of preying on humans for sustenance, they choose the path of a “vegetarian” vampire, drinking the blood from small animals or taking to a blood substitute. All of a sudden, the vampire’s greatest flaw is neutralized, making the concept even more attractive. Now, vampires are no longer merely hyper-sexualized beings of superior power; they are accessible, emotional, and empathetic; they are able to connect with humans at a much closer level. Restraint is what separates a modern vampire from the monster of olden days. With that, the modern concept of the vampire becomes more and more idealized, bringing us to the romanticized bastard of the vampire world: The VampMeyer.

Within Twilight lies vampires devoid of all flaws and the human girl who exists to constantly remind the reader that they are indeed perfect. The Cullen family is gorgeous, wealthy, and uninterested in drinking blood from humans; They have eternal youth and amazing individual powers. On top of all of that, the final flaw of the vampire has been put to rest: Instead of burring in the sun, the skin of these perfectly unique creatures shines like diamonds. With such perfection, it is honestly no wonder that the Twilight franchise has managed to gain such a following. Bella Swan is merely pointing out what we are all thinking: Vampires are the perfect creatures.

Oryx and Crake

The story of Oryx and Crake is not one of futuristic body modification, highly-developed alternative races, or post-apocalyptic reckoning; It is instead the story of two friends and how they grow across this backdrop of advanced technology and a world falling into chaos. The problems of the world are second to the main character Jimmy‘s journey through adulthood and his inferiority complex towards his far more knowledgeable and ambitious best friend, Glenn, aka Crake. Throughout life, one always manages to encounter another individual who is more skilled, more intelligent, and seeming better in every possible way. To Jimmy, Crake is just that. Crake is a genius who seems to see and understand more than the average person. Crake constantly proves his intelligence, weather calculating equations at the mall or mastering every single videogame they play together. Even Jimmy’s mother points out how her son could and should be more like Crake. As adults, Crake creates a race of fantastic creatures while Jimmy works a lackluster job as an artist. The love of Jimmy’s life, however, does nothing to quell his feelings of inadequacy. Orry has always been a mystery to Jimmy, ever since he first saw her on a pornography website. After meaning her in real life, her mystery only deepens, as she lies about her past to amuse Jimmy. Her ease and understanding equals Crake’s, leaving Jimmy a third wheel in their research of the new race of people.

Jimmy is an everyman compared to both Oryx and Crake. He simply lives his life trying to get by, despite the chaos that the world is spiraling into. Just as most people choose to live in ignorance of the pain and suffering of others and the extremely broken state of the world in general, Jimmy lives outside of the loop of understanding. Crake can see the problems of the world and chooses to address them. Oryx has lived a life of hardship and knows of the real pain in the world. With the understanding that the two of them possess, Jimmy’s inferiority complex is quite justified. His best friend has the potential to either save or destroy the world and the girl of his dreams has experienced more than he could possibly hope to. As the desecration of the human race sets in course, however, Jimmy finds himself alive and in charge of the children of Crake. He, the average man, is now burdened with the responsibility of dealing with the problems that his best friend caused. The madness that ensues and his desperate clinging to his visions of Oryx are all just proof that he had always put the two of them on a pedestal throughout his entire life, and now the idea of their superiority has come crashing down and Jimmy must deal with the wreckage of his life and the world in general.