{"id":6367,"date":"2022-03-05T05:00:07","date_gmt":"2022-03-05T04:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sciencefocus.com\/?p=112838"},"modified":"2022-03-05T05:21:11","modified_gmt":"2022-03-05T04:21:11","slug":"got-a-big-decision-to-make-what-the-vampire-allegory-tells-us-about-change","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/rss_feed\/got-a-big-decision-to-make-what-the-vampire-allegory-tells-us-about-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Got a big decision to make? What the vampire allegory tells us about change"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Aleks Krotoski\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Saturday, 05 March 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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There are times in a person\u2019s life when they stand on the edge of a precipice. Or maybe at a fork in the road. Perhaps they\u2019re sitting on a fence. Whatever metaphor about decision-making you prefer, the big decisions are the most unpredictable because there\u2019s no way of knowing who we will be on the other side. Take, for example, deciding to become a vampire.<\/p>\n

In the magnificent TV series What We Do In the Shadows<\/em><\/a>, Guillermo is the only human living with four vampire housemates. He is a \u2018familiar\u2019, a servant-slash-slave who turns out the lights during the day and disposes of the bodies when his undead housemates have finished with them. He does this because his master, Nandor the Relentless, has promised to make him a vampire. God, he wants it so much.<\/p>\n

But Nandor\u2019s evasive. He doesn\u2019t see it like Guillermo does. Nor does he see it like he did 759 years ago, when he became a vampire. Sure, he can do cool things like fly and explode objects into flames. But the rest of it? To Nandor, he misses his old life. He wants to be human again. Being a vampire is a curse.<\/p>\n

According to philosopher Laurie Ann Paul<\/a>, the vampire story is a psychological fairy tale about making big transformative decisions. In 2014, she wrote a book explaining that there is no way to predict how you will respond to a decision until you\u2019ve made it because you will be so transformed that you won\u2019t know yourself. It\u2019s equally impossible for someone on the other side to explain what it\u2019s like to be there.<\/p>\n

Now, becoming a vampire isn\u2019t all that common. If it were, a living person who was considering that path would be able to browse bookshelves crammed with What To Expect\u2026<\/em> guides, and hire consultants to help before, during and after. But even those wouldn\u2019t prepare a person for their undead eternity, explains Paul. Choosing to become a vampire is forever. Like joining a religion, or transforming your physical appearance, or your mental state. Or becoming a parent. There\u2019s no going back.<\/p>\n

\""Illustration\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
\u00a9 Scott Balmer<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

I have a friend who has got a two-year-old. It\u2019s not been an easy couple of years. She\u2019s starting to see the joy now, which is joyful for everyone around her who\u2019s already been through their version of those never-ending 24 months.<\/p>\n

Her sister is about to give birth for the first time. \u201cI warned her,\u201d said my friend, only half joking. Yes, I laughed. And I warned you. My friend didn\u2019t remember my warning, just as I didn\u2019t listen to another friend\u2019s warning, who eventually held my hand as I came to terms with how fundamentally life had changed. I don\u2019t know if vampires do this too, but we humans have a remarkable ability to hear things through our feelings.<\/p>\n

The fourth series of What We Do In The Shadows<\/em> is landing soon, so we don\u2019t know yet whether Guillermo will become a vampire. But whether he does or not, I predict he\u2019ll somehow be instrumental in helping Nandor find joy in his undead life. It\u2019s how these stories usually go. Because there is no going back. It just takes time to remember again who you are.<\/p>\n