A Rendering of True Monstrosity

Today's Vampires have a conscience and viewers want a character that will look and feed like a monster. Zombie's have breezed by Vampires in terms of disgust because, Vampires have become civilized. Horror can disturb in some ways and console in others, Ken Gelder's states. On the other hand, James Twitchell says, "[horror seeks to] conserve culture & protect the individual." Both monsters are reanimated corpses but grip audiences differently. Vampires are law-abiding citizens and   we want to relate more to them, Zombies have no conscious and only act on their desire for brains. Vampires visually lack the reality of a corpse, they are "perfectly preserved and sexually potent," meanwhile we are afraid of what we don't know, no one knows what happens after death, the fear of this fascinates us. Vampires uphold social codes, protect borders and in some cases keep treaties (Cullens). Zombies threaten stability and security. A powerful metaphor of imprisonment in the decaying human body as we age due to the undiscovered advancements of the fountains of youth, we can't cheat death and are not immortal. In contrast, Vampires express everlasting youth, vitality, and the corruption of the grave. Lastly, Vampires have a sense of self & individuality, along with the capability to develop relationships; Zombies lack individuality and their only driving force is the need to feed. Vampires have no time limit and they are able to lead an extravagant lifestyle. Dracula only had a rickety castle and has to work for all he had. Over the years, Vampires and Zombies have evolved into two different monsters, one that is admired and the other that terrifies audiences. Zombies are what we want to avoid and can't control (aging, government, economy etc.) while Vampires are what we want to be but can't (immortal, beautiful, and rich).