Vampires have been on my mind – this summer, I discovered the absolutely wonderful show, True Blood, and the books that the show is based on. It’s gorgeous and extremely erotic. Vampires represent our desire to be consumed. Generally, that desire seems to be placed on the women – they are the humans vampires feed on. The Vampire is male, and the human is female. In some small way True Blood is a particularly fantastic show because it unsettles that paradigm just a drop. The humans benefit tremendously from drinking Vampire blood. While “V” is a drug in the show, in the novels, vampire blood has benefits far beyond getting high; it makes the drinker stronger and increases their libido. In other words, it makes them more “man” according to our cultural understanding of masculinity and femininity. The novel describes the experience of drinking vampire blood as exceedingly positive – leading to the conclusion that being more “man” is an exceedingly positive development. I would undoubtedly agree that while men are the holders of “virility” I want to be a man as well – I want strength and libido.
Even the act of the vampire feeding on the human, represents a gender bender of sort. Generally semen is the only substance that humans can drink. Thus the “woman” who allows male vampires to feed on her “life force” is in the process of becoming more “man.” The blood is a kind of semen. Now take that back to the male gaze – vampires represent the fantasy that women want to blow men, want to drink their semen. Thus in True Blood, man vampires are able to share some of their “vampireness” which is in fact some of their masculinity with the woman they fuck, with the woman they allow to drink from them. However, while men continue to be the vampires and women the humans, gender stereotypes are reinforced, rather than unsettled ( man- vamp, is giving some of man-vampness to girl) When will there be a women-vampire, perhaps even a queer vampire –that’s a show that would have my patronage.
