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The Origin of the Vampire Myth
Oct. 6th, 2010 07:18 amIn response to ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ysabetwordsmith 's latest Poetry Fishbowl theme, vampires, I wanted to a provide a prompt regarding the real world origins of vampires. I can't seem to locate the original essay I had read many years ago that talked about this, but I do recall that vampire myths began with the Middle Ages peasants experience with death, especially in relation to plagues. The people of this time period would not have a scientific understanding of decomposition, or of the transmission of disease. Very simply, a body put into the ground was expected to be a skeleton the next time it was seen.
( Bloated corpses and other fun things! )
ysabetwordsmith 's latest Poetry Fishbowl theme, vampires, I wanted to a provide a prompt regarding the real world origins of vampires. I can't seem to locate the original essay I had read many years ago that talked about this, but I do recall that vampire myths began with the Middle Ages peasants experience with death, especially in relation to plagues. The people of this time period would not have a scientific understanding of decomposition, or of the transmission of disease. Very simply, a body put into the ground was expected to be a skeleton the next time it was seen. ( Bloated corpses and other fun things! )
