Florence Marryat

Greta Depledge

This scholarly edition of Florence Marryat's 1897 novel includes a critical introduction by Greta Depledge, suggestions for further reading, explanatory notes and contextual material on female sexuality, hysteria, race, eugenics, and the occult.

The Blood of the Vampire

Emily Gay

- SOME SPOILERS AHEAD -
 
I read this book as part of the required reading for the final semester of my final year at university. The module was called 'Fin de siècle Gothic', just in case anyone wondered. I read this book in five hours, cover to cover, though it felt like I'd only been sat there for about two.

At first, I'll be honest, I really didn't like I was going to like this book. The first couple of chapters were a bit difficult for me to get through - I'd put that down to the fact that I had no real understanding of certain elements of the setting - but despite that, I wanted to follow Harriet's journey. It was unlike any book I'd been exposed to so far on that module, and one of the few female writers too. I can honestly say that I'm glad I stuck it out and read the book in its entirety. That's quite a rare honour for the books I've encountered during my time as an undergraduate. It has to be, without a doubt, in my top three of all books I've read during university. We were asked, as part of the seminar, to consider whether Harriet is a victim or a Gothic monster. I'm going to phrase my review in light of this:

I think an argument can be made that Harriet is both a Gothic monster and a victim, though my thoughts predominantly lean towards victimhood. I'm a great believer in the idea that our own experiences of the world shape how we engage with texts, and I would say that my own experiences have led me to empathise with Harriet on a human level. She's a girl alone in a world that has never truly made time for her, nor has she had the luxury of knowing love from her family or friends. Add to that her upbringing in a convent after the destruction of her family's plantation, and I think she can be forgiven for her childlike behaviour through various points of the novel. She is, from the very opening of the novel, an outsider, part of the 'Other'. The ability to make friends, experience love - these are all things that are learned through near-constant socialisation with fellow human beings. She was never given these opportunities and perhaps that is where her vampirism stems from. I believe that she is a victim, specifically of the hereditary, her childhood and of a society that is too set in its ways (mostly represented by Elinor Leyton), one that cannot abide the 'new' invading and inhabiting its fragile space. 

As for Harriet as a Gothic monster? Marryat positions her as a danger to those around her, evidenced by the untimely deaths of those she holds dearest. She's a Gothic monster in the way that Dracula or Hyde are stereotypical Gothic monsters - they represent something that middle-class society fears. However, I think Harriet is the most relatable and 'realistic' of all the Gothic monsters we encountered in the module. 

Harriet's brand of vampirism is refreshing. She isn't a fang-bearing, overtly dangerous creature. Instead, she is something entirely different - I believe we used the phrase 'psychic vampire' to describe her predation upon those who hurt her. As if a new take on the vampire archetype wasn't good enough, the romance of the book was (secretly) my favourite part. I'll always be a sucker for a good love story.

The Blood of the Vampire is a book that left its mark on me. I finished the book in a state of contemplation. How do we treat the 'Other'? Why do we treat them in the way that we do? I can guarantee that I'll be re-reading this book at some point. Probably once I've let the dust settle on the memory and stress of being an undergraduate.

The Blood of the Vampire

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