This module introduces students to a range of nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first century literary and cinematic representations of vampires from different cultural backgrounds. It explores the reasons for the abiding allure of the figure of the vampire both in popular culture and in literary fiction.
The module will examine the ways in which vampires function as polyvalent symbols of specifically modern preoccupations, for the emergence and popularity of vampire tales is intricately bound up with the advent and wider cultural ramifications of modernity. What do vampires represent in each of the works discussed? What hidden desires and anxieties do they allow authors and filmmakers to express? The vampire is an allegorically highly potent figure that is suspended between life and death and between animal and human existence. Vampires frequently serve as foils to discuss more contentious matters, in particular questions relating to sexuality, gender roles, class, immortality and the desire for everlasting youth, being an outsider, and addiction.
Total Contact Hours: 20
Private Study Hours: 130
Total Study Hours: 150
Main assessment methods
Essay 1 (2,000 words) – 40%
Essay 2 (2,500 words) – 60%
Reassessment methods
Reassessment Instrument: 100% Coursework
The University is committed to ensuring that core reading materials are in accessible electronic format in line with the Kent Inclusive Practices. The most up to date reading list for each module can be found on the university's reading list pages: https://kent.rl.talis.com/index.html
See the library reading list for this module (Canterbury)
The intended subject specific learning outcomes.
On successfully completing the module students will be able to:
1 Show knowledge and critical of understanding of a range of different nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first century representations of vampires in literature and film;
2 Demonstrate detailed understanding of the cultural, literary, political and historical contexts that shape the representations of vampires in specific works;
3 Reflect critically on the persistent metaphorical allure of the figure of the vampire in popular culture, and apply insights gained from this reflection in other literary and cultural contexts;
4 Critically assess the distinctive features and symbolical meanings of nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first-century representations of vampires;
5 Examine the ways in which writers and directors have deployed the figure of the vampire to explore questions relating to a diverse range of subjects, including sexuality, immortality, being an outsider, addiction and monstrosity, and assess the strengths and weaknesses of the comparative approach in answering these questions.
The intended generic learning outcomes.
On successfully completing the module students will be able to:
1 Demonstrate refined essay-writing and argument-construction skills;
2 Demonstrate excellent close reading and analytical skills;
3 Conduct independent research and demonstrate the associated independent learning styles.
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