Biting Back at Society

Abstract

The myth of the lesbian vampire spiked in popularity throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s, inspiring erotic horror films, like Roy Ward Baker’s The Vampire Lovers (1970). While the easing censorship regulations allowed the film to depict more overt scenes of sex and violence, it was the second wave of feminism that allowed the film to be as erotic as it was (Baker 556), as the traditional gender role of men was called into question. Protesting for bodily autonomy, the right to express their sexual identities and overall looking for equal opportunities to their male counterparts, the traditionally superior man was under threat by female bonding. Lesbian vampires like Mircalla were unchained to a male figure and were able to liberate other women through their mental strength, physical beauty and by providing deeper emotional connections than men could. The lesbian vampire presented a reality where women could receive everything from a female partner, rendering the male useless.