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Why Do Vampires Turn Us On?

By Drew Nelles,  Newser Staff

Posted Jul 18, 2009 10:58 AM CDT
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(Newser) – Vampires have always been sexy, from Bram Stoker’s original smooth operator to Brad Pitt in Interview With a Vampire. But why have True Blood and Twilight sunk their fangs so thoroughly into today’s erotic zeitgeist? For starters, they're modern-day Romeos for angsty Juliets, Newsweek reports, a hypersexualized update on the feared and misunderstood outsider. "It's all about the classic, tormented relationship, the otherness," says one shrink who calls himself a "short Jewish guy" who loves vampires.

But it’s probably the danger that enthralls most readers: A researcher of vampire fandom finds that women want a break from being in control and get off on the fantasy of being the victim, not the vamp. “It's a metaphor for dangerous sex,” she suggests. “Because if it goes wrong, you're gone." And all that near-death fantasy can translate into real-life kink. “My husband is happy I like this show,” one giggling True Blood fan says.

In this image released by HBO, Anna Paquin, left, and Stephen Moyer are shown in a scene from True Blood.
In this image released by HBO, Anna Paquin, left, and Stephen Moyer are shown in a scene from "True Blood."   (AP Photo/HBO, Jaimie Trueblood)
In this image released by HBO, Anna Paquin, left, and Stephen Moyer are shown in a scene from True Blood.
In this image released by HBO, Anna Paquin, left, and Stephen Moyer are shown in a scene from "True Blood."   (AP Photo/HBO, Prashant Gupta)
Stephen Moyer is shown in a scene from the HBO series True Blood. Dead-but-still-talking characters are all over popular culture these days.
Stephen Moyer is shown in a scene from the HBO series "True Blood." Dead-but-still-talking characters are all over popular culture these days.   (AP Photo/HBO, Jaimie Trueblood, FILE)
In this image released by Summit Entertainment, Kristen Stewart, left, and Robert Pattinson are shown in a scene from Twilight.
In this image released by Summit Entertainment, Kristen Stewart, left, and Robert Pattinson are shown in a scene from "Twilight."   (AP Photo/Summit Entertainment, Peter Sorel)
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It's fang, penetration, ecstasy. Our readers know that vampire sex is somehow going to be the very best sex a woman has ever had. - vampire novelist Laurell K. Hamilton

I think it's kind of weird to be the impaled one, the seduced one. There were so many women who wanted to lose control. And I thought women had come a little further than that. - Katherine Ramsland, professor of psychology at DeSales University

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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 7 comments
freethemall
Jul 19, 2009 8:12 AM CDT
deebles: I thumbs up your response to Jojo about the term slut. The double standard never made a lick of sense to me. Under this standard, females were socialized to be coy, and "hard to get". For me, females were hard enough to get, without being taught to be harder yet to get.
brawne
Jul 19, 2009 6:52 AM CDT
I guess by slut you mean female. It's the 21st century. I would think that slut is done. And if you're a woman--shame on you. No slut ever advanced her slut goals without a man. Until you label both stop labeling at all. And sex is not BAD. Unless you can't participate and then I guess the bad is a weeee bit of jealousy.
2-bits
Jul 18, 2009 7:17 AM CDT
b/c edwin cullen is so hot lol i wuld die w/o him!!!11

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