Vampire
From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Vampires are monsters in legends and stories. The first vampire legends were told in Eastern Europe, but much of how modern people see vampires was created by Bram Stoker in the famous novel, Dracula. Few people believe that vampires are real, but they are still very popular in movies, television, and books.
Vampires were once people but have a supernatural curse. Vampires must drink human blood to survive. They do this by biting people on the neck with their two long fangs. People who are killed by having all of their blood drank by vampires also become vampires. In many stories, vampires can change into other animals, usually bats, though also wolves or rats.
Depending on the story, vampires may have some or all of these characteristics:
- They cannot go out in sunlight, so they sleep during the day.
- They can only be killed in certain ways:
- being beheaded
- having a stake driven through their heart
- being set on fire
- They can be weakened by crosses, garlic, holy water, and silver.
- They cannot cross the ocean unless they are in a coffin surrounded by soil from their homeland.
- They cannot enter a house unless they have been invited in.
- If a bag of rice or other similar substance is spilled on the ground, a vampire will have to count every grain.
- They have no reflection in glass, mirrors, or other things.
[edit] Vampires in fiction
Dracula is the most famous vampire in fiction, and several movies have been made about him. There is also a popular series of books by Anne Rice about vampires. The television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer featured a young girl who fought vampires, but also befriended good ones.
[edit] What lies beyond the myth
Some neurolgists believe that rabies might lie at the base of the myth.
- Rabid people have trouble walking.
- They are sexually very active and can be aggressive. They may bite, while they are in this frenzy.
- Very often they have cramps, or seizures. They do bite their tongue often during such cramps. This may lead to them bleeding from their mouth.
- Rabies can be spread by biting
- Many diseases of the brain make people sensitive to light.
- Many diseases of the brain make people have difficulty swallowing. This is the fear of water.
The problem with this is that rabid people, especially in advanced stages of the disease, will live for about 10 days, at best. This does not account for them getting out of ditches and graves over weeks or months.
Another explanation was given by other people. The disease might be porphyria, rather than rabies. Porphyria is a genetic condition that leads to differences when the body makes blood. Some parts of the blood can not be made in sufficient quantities.
They are people in the real world who like to dress and behave like a vampire. Some of them may also drink blood.
Finally, there is the vampire bat.