Christabel
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Christabel is a long poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge in two parts. The first part was written in 1797, and the second in 1800. Coleridge planned three additional parts, but these were never completed. The verse of Christabel features a novel metrical system, based on the count of only accented syllables. Each line of the poem, while containing anywhere from four to twelve total syllables, contains only four stressed syllables. The poem is notable for its influence on later vampire fiction.
Plot
The story of Christabel concerns a central female character of the same name and her encounter with a stranger called Geraldine. Geraldine is an unusual being and seems to have a sexual attraction to Christabel. Her malign influence is felt as the story progresses and she seems altogether unhuman.Influence
Christabel is largely considered the main source for Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's vampire novel Carmilla, first published in 1872. It has been argued that Carmilla is a homage or adaptation of Christabel. Le Fanu's antagonist Mircalla has certain similarities with Christabel's Geraldine; for instance, she cannot cross the threshold of a house, amd seems to be stronger at night. Likewise, the heroines of the two works are similar, both Christabel and Laura are the children of deceased mothers currently in the charge of their widowed fathers. Gerladine's presence gives Christabel similar symptoms as Carmilla's does to Laura, both heroines experience troubled sleep and weakness in the morning after spending the night with their hostess.These points and the general character of Gerladine have lead some to believe Geraldine to be the first vampire in English literature, though it should be noted that the poem does not refer to Geraldine as such, as the word had not yet entered into common usage in the English language. Geraldine also lacks certain characteristics typical of vampires in later fiction; for example she does not drink blood.
External links
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