A Spark of Humanity, Relationships in 'Interview with the Vampire'

By their very nature vampires seems destined for isolation. Though they share many superficial similarities with humans they are parasites by nature, isolated in what what Rice refers to as a ‘forest of humanity’. In Interview with the Vampire Rice explores one such vampire, who struggles to balance his baser instincts with his need for companionship on his immortal journey. The through line of the story is the relationship between Louis and the cruel and guileful Vampire Lestat. Although Lestat constantly toys with Louis, torments him even, the reality is Lestat is the true benefactor from their relationship. He is desperate for companionship and his monstrous behavior is partly his true nature and partly a smokescreen to hide his weakness. Louis for his part accepts his cohort in immortality. At first out of necessity and fear as he grasps for anything after the death of his brother, but later it seems out of a begrudging fondness for Lestat. But immortality it would seem is destined to devastate any relationship.

Tormented by a nagging sense of morality Louis does everything in his power to resist Lestat’s constant invitation to succumb to his baser urges. Slowly Louis caves to Lestat and his own craving for human nourishment. Louis becomes disillusioned with Lestat’s glaring lack of humanity and his own bloodlust. As Louis contemplates leaving, Lestat introduces him to the most important relation of all, the little vampire girl Claudia. They take her in as their ‘daughter’ so they may stay together to care for her. Although Louis and Lestat take up pseudo-parental roles, it would be inaccurate to characterize their relationship as father-daughter. Lestat plays the role of the stern, father figure who teachers her the violent facts of vampire life and Louis is more mothering and teaches her the joys of knowledge and critical thinking. Even so, for all Louis’s endless adoration, Claudia is still more of his plaything, his docile vessel to fill with ideas. Since it is not a parental or sexual relationship the only explanation for Louis’s attachment to Claudia is his feeling of power over her as well as the connection to what her innocent form represents in his last vestiges of humanity. What Claudia gets from their relationship is not immediately clear obvious, however it is very different from what Louis is receiving. It is only when Claudia starts to use some of the knowledge she gained from Louis to uncover the truth that their relationship starts to break down. From that point on they are only ‘bound together by hatred’ as Claudia says. When it is clear that Claudia has turned monstrous and the power dynamic shifts again Louis feels lost.  It is this shifting of power that turns Louis and Claudia against Lestat and leads Louis briefly towards Armand, a turn of events that spells ruin for all. After so much loss, Louis takes the only reasonable approach and becomes a solitary creature. The path that seems destined for all vampires that, like Louis still retain some inner spark of humanity.

'Dark City' as an Example of Contemporary Gothic Esthetics

When I think of the Gothic in contemporary culture Alex Proyas' film Dark City immediately comes to mind. Dark City is a hard film to categorize in many ways because it draws on influences as diverse as film noir, expressionism, and science fiction, however the foundations for the film both stylistically and thematically are undeniably gothic. The first thing one notices about Dark City are the striking visuals. The story takes place in a throbbing, congested tangle of buildings based on a hodgepodge of 19th century cities. This mysterious city and all it's inhabitance are suspended in eternal night . The monsters in the film, called Strangers, congregate in cathedral-like industrial spaces underground which are bursting with religious imagery. Although there are no castles, churches or victorian mansions in Dark City it characterizes the bizarre, modern post-industrial equivalents in much the same way. The sense of dread the setting provokes in combination with constant darkness is undeniable. As the amnesiac hero struggles to comes to terms with his situation, the constant and impenetrable shadows of his surroundings are host to a mysterious and pervasive evil. At first this may only seem to be reflection of the character's own considerable inner turmoil and distorted perceptions, however he soon finds himself at battle with monsters that seek to exploit the nature of mankind for their own immortality. Ultimately the hero must confront this evil head on to fight off the supernatural forces that enslave humanity and stave off the darkness. Dark City is perhaps not the most obvious example of "contemporary gothicness" because it strives for much more. It uses gothic esthetics as the basic ingredients for a rich melange of themes, styles and references. It is this blend that I find particularly fascinating.