h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Entry: The restless dead - unearthing the real Slavic vampire - A9734664
Author: Almirena - U189406

This entry differs considerably from any other vampire article submitted here, in that it is the result of significant scholarly research, and its writer studied source material in order to gauge as clearly as possible how the concept of the vampire in Slavic folklore was birthed. The available online material concerning vampires is often so flawed that it can only be used with enough salt to create the Dead Sea.

It's such a fascinating topic that I hope readers will thoroughly enjoy it. There's no reason at all why serious scholarship should lack excitement and interest.

I will be happy to read any feedback. Thank you.

I just finished reading this article and found it fascinating. I think that it is generally well written and truly explores the reasons behind the belief in vampires--something that other entries always seem to leave out!

Yep, it's a marvellous entry. I'm sure lots of our Peer Review regulars will be along soon to give you some more hints and tips on amendments and additions!

P

Great Entry

Neat style of writing. If you want this to get into the Edited Guide you may need to make a few alterations before its chosen however.

Some of these alterations will be purely syntax based, and I'm sure an h2g2 <./>SubEditor</.>, or someone with that kind of knowledge will soon show themselves and point out what you can do to improve the article in that way.

Myself, I love to see links to other h2g2 Edited Guide Entries in articles, so as you can zip around the Edited Guide learning new little bits of information here and there

For example, you could link to these;

A273566 Vampires
A2218475 Count Dracula – There And Back Again
A588233 Bram Stoker - Author
A593084 Elizabeth Bathory - the Blood Countess

And in return if this article is chosen for the Edited Guide if anyone wants to read about vampires, then this Entry will be amongst those linked to (hopefully), so as all the misconceptions can be laid to rest (no pun intended).

Good luck with this Entry, it's a wonderful subject and well written.

MJ

Yes, so far I've had no luck in getting links to display. Clearly the coding used here is significantly different to xhtml! I'll need to get to grips with it.

Thank you for the feedback.

Try going here <./>GuideML-Clinic</.> That may help you out a bit

Fascinating, put together with style and enlightening - no additions or amendments to suggest.

'a fresh and beautiful noble creature possessed of a wider and more alluring set of powers.' I couldn't help mentally adding 'and a less alluring set of teeth' but on second thoughts, given medieval dentistry, I'm wrong .

I suspect you have used more '-'s and ellipses than is the usual style for the Edited Guide. If I'm right, and I'd wait for a second opinion, it might be something you'd prefer to look at yourself and keep the pacing you want, rather than leave to the editing stage.

Thankyou for the enlightenment,
Waz

Excellent. Normally vampire origin stories contain a reference to Vlad The Impaler. Does he feature at all in this text ?

Wow, great stuff

~shudder~

Associating Vlad Tepes with vampires is something that occurred only post Bram Stoker's Dracula. Stoker found the historical information on Vlad Tepes so fascinating that he decided to use him as his model for his literary character of Count Dracula.

In truth, neither his contemporary admirers nor contemporary enemies thought of him as a vampire. He was certainly accused of cruel acts, but he was not said to be a) an animated corpse; b) drinking blood from the living; or c) causer of inexplicable deaths.

He WAS accused of behaving cruelly towards his enemies, feasting in the presence of his impaled enemies, and dipping his food into their blood. Romanians consider him a hero; the fleeing Catholic Germans considered him a monstrous murderer satanically opposed to Catholicism. The woodcuts in which his deeds were recorded and disseminated in Germany became what we might consider "front-page news", and Vlad Tepes, justly or unjustly, was given the reputation of the most monstrous of men, utterly to be feared and hated.

Still, none of that implies or states that he was a vampire. There is no historical evidence - none at all - to suggest that, and the modern confusion over the subject is purely as a result of having been influenced by Stoker's excellent novel.

No other vampire novel has had the overwhelming influence that "Dracula" has had. Even those who have not read it are influenced by it, because the novel has shaped the modern iconic vampire in western imagination. One can trace other influences upon this modern iconic vampire, but none so absolutely pivotal as the terrible Count from Bram Stoker's novel.

Yes - thanks for that, I assume the blood drinking comes from the practise you describe above. I think it might be worth putting that into the entry, because, as you say, its a common mis-conception.

Perhaps it could. The main reason why I've not dealt with the Vlad Tepes element in the article is that he's by no means the only historical figure to whom vampirism is attributed - and once I begin with the addition of our friend Vlad, where would it end? I could add it only as an example of what doesn't have any bearing on the vampire cults of 17th century Baltic Slavs.

I will certainly think about it. Thank you for your comments!

Hi there A -

Are you still working on this one? If so, here are a few things on style;

Edited Guide Entries don't start with header or subheaders, this is because they mess with the mobile or pda versions, so you can remove the first header 'Introduction' with no problems.

It's also nice to link through to other Edited Guide Entries, a few of those that I recommended earlier are a start.

I honestly think this has a place in the EG as it is a well written and interesting Entry. Do you have more to give?

MJ

Your Guide Entry has just been picked from Peer Review by one of our Scouts, and is now heading off into the Editorial Process, which ends with publication in the Edited Guide. We've therefore moved this Review Conversation out of Peer Review and to the entry itself.

If you'd like to know what happens now, check out the page on 'What Happens after your Entry has been Recommended?' at EditedGuide-Process. We hope this explains everything.

Thanks for contributing to the Edited Guide!

Great Stuff! Well Done Am

Excellent ('bout time)

Good. Congrats Almirena, .

Marvellous!