- Paperback: 376 pages
- Publisher: University of Minnesota Press (1 Sep 1999)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0816633924
- ISBN-13: 978-0816633920
- Product Dimensions: 22.9 x 15.1 x 2.1 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,021,707 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Synopsis
In The Vampire Lectures, Laurence A. Rickels sifts through the rich mythology of vampirism, from medieval folklore to Marilyn Manson, to explore the profound and unconscious appeal of the undead.'
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Rickels's book does not offer any footnotes to its hundreds of references and neither does it have an index, a problem which seriously diminishes its value as an academic text. Students researching this area would therefore be advised to look elsewhere. The main problem with the book is its style. The book is presented as an 'as-live reconstruction' of actual lectures that Rickels has given, and we as readers are asked to allow for any 'embarrassing mistakes in judgement'. Though Rickels has many interesting things to say about vampire fiction and film, he tiresomely disguises it all in a text that is completely incoherent and jumps around wildly between subjects, so that it is a real chore for the reader to actually find anything. This reads more like in-production notes for a book rather than a polished article. The monumental effort required to plough through a single chapter makes reading this a joyless endeavour. Rickel's book demands far too much patience of its readers.
0 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The guilty assumption underlying The Vampire Lectures is that there could well be intelligent life out there in its readership or audience. Such an assumption is not necessarily compatible with consumer protection/projection. How many people really deserve to read this book?
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
13 reviews
27 of 32 people found the following review helpful
Intellectual Chocolate Mousse - Anne Rice
25 Sep 1999
Format:Paperback
I have just discovered this book and make a strong recommendation of it. It is called THE VAMPIRE LECTURES. The author is a professor at U.C. Santa Barbara. His name is Laurence A. Rickels. The publisher sent me the book, and I am very glad that they did because Professor Rickels has a great deal to say in THE VAMPIRE LECTURES about the first three books of the Vampire Chronicles as well as about other vampire literature and film in general.
According to the info that came with the book, Professor Rickels' class on vampires has apparently become extremely popular over the years, on the Santa Barbara Campus. He started with a few students and he now has hundreds.
I am quite amazed by many of his observations in the book, but above all, I'm honored to be included as a subject for study. The book is quite intellectually hefty.
I think many of you will find this book interesting. Some of you will find it extremely challenging and engrossing. Many of you will find it satisfying. It's the ultimate book to give to anyone who makes fun of you for liking vampire novels or films. To quote the publisher, the book "makes an original and intellectually rigorous contribution to literary and psychoanalytic theory, identifying the subconscious meanings, complex symbolism, and philosophical arguments-- particularly those of Marx, Freud, and Nietzche--embedded in vampirism and gothic literature."
I've ordered several copies of the book from Amazon.com so I know it's available. It's published by the University of Minnesota Press. Again, I recommend it. It is not easy going as a read but it is incredibly rich and thought provoking. I'm grateful for it. When I write novels, I think and feel as Lestat or Louis or Armand, and it's wonderful to read Professor Rickels' commentary on what I've done.
Anne Rice (Submitted by Anne Rice, author)
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
An interesting book, but consider this before you read it...
13 Feb 2004
Format:Paperback
Lawrence Rickels has a very particular writing style that is often frowned upon because the 'average' reader cannot really handle it. It is jargonistic, self-inflating, self-validating, and extremely complex. Like many other writers of critical theory, Rickels is engaging in a discourse for those 'in the know.' This is not an introductory book on the subject of vampyrism, and I would not recommend it to any reader if they are not at first familar with contemporary psychoanalytic theory. I enjoy reading Rickels' writing because he loves to play around with word puns in a very witty way. Perhaps a better introduction to Rickels' writings would be his many short articles in various art exhibition catalogues (check your local university library). I do not think I would have enjoyed this book had I not had the opportunity to listen to Rickels' lectures. This book requires an active reader who is willing to struggle with the text (that is the beauty of theory, right? A sort of painful pleasure). That said, it can be rewarding if you are up for a challenge.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
psycho-analysis of the legend
13 Oct 1999
Format:Paperback
The author's style can make this a challenging read, rife with puns, wordplay, and prose that probably works better in the original lectures. The psycho-analytic angles are not technically dense and should not discourage interested readers. Not a quick read, but a good one, the book covers the breadth of its topic with respect and humor.
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