There were many books on vampires before Bram Stoker’s Dracula.
Anne Rice’s name used to be synonymous with the word “vampire,” and regrettably the Twilight novels are conjured to mind today. But the name Bram Stoker and the title of his famous novel, “Dracula,” transcend fads and fashion. Dracula will be in print and haunting nightmares centuries after Rice and Twilight are forgotten. Bram gave the world the seminal, the eternal, image of the vampire. He redefined the mythos for all time. But he didn’t invent it.
Stoker’s novel is a coalescence of all that came before, but a look at those stories reveals many obvious parallels to “Dracula.” Before the Count, there was Sir Francis Varney, Lord Ruthven, and the lusty Carmilla. There are numerous others, not so well known, even to vampire aficionados. Fans interested in the development of the cultural phenomenon that is the vampire, and the genesis of vampirism’s most infamous celebrity, will enjoy a perusal of this long list. Nor do all examples originate from fiction. There are the folkloric accounts that predate them to consider. How many of these Stoker incorporated is debatable, but there is no doubt he knew about them, and read many. Do you know of any proto-Draculas not appearing on this list?
