Vampires and Zombies have lived in our nightmares for centuries. To do an accurate comparison, one has to look at all aspects of each creature. Both the mythical and the reality of each creature should be looked at. First, the vampire:

The Mythical Vampire.

Ethereal. Beautiful. Ageless. Today, thanks to writers like Anne Rice and Laurel K. Hamilton, they are creatures of emotions. They are very similar to humans except for certain limitations, as well as bonuses. They cannot go in sunlight and are terrified of the cross. Entering a house of the holy or a blessed graveyard is sure death to them. They are forever young, forever beautiful, and forever cursed.

They also have amazing abilities. Some can turn into mist, bat, or wolf. Others can control a creature, or “summon” one. Still others are amazingly fast. One of the most alluring traits of this mythical creature is its ability to mesmerize its prey with its eyes and mind.

Originally, this creature was originally believed to be an epitome of pure evil. The perfect example is Dracula, who was created by Bram Stoker. What most people do not realize is the fact that Dracula is the combination of hundreds of English legends concerning vampires. He was all-powerful, able to walk during the day, and did age - though not like humans.

There are no myths concerning a “first” vampire, or how they originally came to be. However, it is generally thought that they came about by an arrangement of a man and Satan.

The Real Vampire

The vampire had its bearings in history with the stories of Elizabeth of Bathory and Vlad Dracul. These people were considered vampires for very separate reasons. Vlad was known for drinking the blood of his victims after a battle. He believed that their blood would give him their wisdom, courage, and strength. Elizabeth bathed in the blood of the young maidens from a nearby town. She believed that by bathing in the young blood, she would maintain her own youth.

The Catholic Church even investigated vampires at one point. Due to the accounts of their priests, they declared vampires a real creature. They also made it so that anyone who was suspected of being a vampire could be exhumed and then burned.

The Mythical Zombie

The Zombie. This creature is a human who was once alive. It is drawn to the living. This is believed to be due to some sort of extra-sensory perception. The newer zombies make their debuts on theater screens. In times past, they were seen as shuffling, shambling creatures with stiff arms, and long, drawn-out groans (The Night of the Living Dead. In this current era, zombies have intelligence (Land of the Dead, speed, and agility (28 Days Later.

The Real Zombie

Zombies were not as well known as vampires. They seemed to appear out of the dark when a book called “The Magic Island” by William B. Seabrook. The book was the accountings of Mr. Seabrook’s experiences in Haiti. In one chapter, he discusses the zombie.

People often sold family members to a “bokor” (a voodoo sorcerer), in order to pay off their debt. The bokor would then give the family member a potion that would “kill” them. When they would wake up, after a funeral, they would be in the service of the Bokor. There are two such accounts of this happening.

The first is that of Narcisse. His own brother poisoned Narcisse. They had had a fight over the lands that their father had left them. After his supposed funeral, he became a zombie. After the bokor died, Narcisse recovered his memory and returned home. Many of the people who the bokor had “turned” were not as lucky as Narcisse. Narcisse was kept a zombie with a paste made from datura.

Another account details a woman who appeared in a village dressed in rags. One of the villagers recognized the woman as having been buried some thirty years before. Later, there were claims that the woman had many mental disorders that led to her situation.

The Comparison

These two creatures have numerous differences. Many people who read about them, or see them on movies, do not think of the commonalities. There are several similarities. One is the fact that for each creature, there are at least two cases of “real” incidents.

Through all the differences and all the similarities, there is one distinct comparison. One parallel that most people do not even connect when thinking of the two creatures. One similarity that connects them even to you.

They were both once human.