Carmilla by Irish author Sheridan Le Fanu is an 1872 Gothic novella. Many regard it as one of the early works of vampire fiction. Initially published as a serial form, it tells the story narrated by a young woman preyed upon by a female vampire named Carmilla, later revealed to be Mircalla, Countess Karnstein. The character is a typical example of the vampire, expressing romantic desires toward the protagonist. The novella has been adapted many times in film. Like other literary vampires of the 19th century, Carmilla is a similar product of a culture with strict sexual mores and tangible religious fear. While she selected exclusively female victims, she only becomes emotionally involved with a few. Le Fanu’s work has been noted as an influence on Bram Stoker’s masterwork of the genre, Dracula.
Like other vampires, Carmilla had nocturnal habits, but was not confined to the darkness. She was able to change her form and to pass through solid walls. Carmilla works as a Gothic horror story because her victims are portrayed as succumbing to a perverse and unholy temptation that has severe metaphysical consequences for them.
About the Author
La Fanu contributed numerous short stories, mostly of ghosts and the supernatural, to the Dublin University Magazine, which he owned and edited from 1861 to 1869. In a Glass Darkly (1872), a book of five long stories, is generally regarded as his best work; it includes his classic story Carmilla, which popularized the theme of the female vampire.
