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It isn't just movies. Books and history also make those claims.
Well first you need to understand that there are people out there who believe that vampires and werewolves are REAL. And according to their mythos, back in the days of Ancient Rome there actually was a war between vampires and werewolves. And rivalry has existed ever since.
Pretty far out, right?
Well, here's a very interesting "essay" someone posted refuting this that you'd probably find interesting:
http://forum.werewolfcafe.com/viewtopic.php?id=3797
So if these guys are nutjobs, how did the rivalry survive into fiction?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They're natural rivals - both are undead creatures (arguably the most well-known of all monsters) living among humans, trying to pass as humans. They both prey on humans and animals, and both are very aggressive, private creatures. And they all live very, very unnaturally long lives.
So it's not a giant leap to imagine that - if they were real - there would be turf wars, there would be rivalry.
And a Couple More Things to Consider:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wolves (the were variety included) are notoriously pack-minded and dominant. They would not share their territory easily or leave any other undead creature unchallenged. It is in the nature of the wolf to assert dominance.
Some lore says that werewolves and vampires have the keen ability to recognize each other, potentially compromising their efforts to disguise themselves in the human world. (Awkward!)
And any evil creature (as both are supposed to be) that recognizes the weaknesses of another is likely to exploit those weaknesses!
Well first you need to understand that there are people out there who believe that vampires and werewolves are REAL. And according to their mythos, back in the days of Ancient Rome there actually was a war between vampires and werewolves. And rivalry has existed ever since.
Pretty far out, right?
Well, here's a very interesting "essay" someone posted refuting this that you'd probably find interesting:
http://forum.werewolfcafe.com/viewtopic.php?id=3797
So if these guys are nutjobs, how did the rivalry survive into fiction?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They're natural rivals - both are undead creatures (arguably the most well-known of all monsters) living among humans, trying to pass as humans. They both prey on humans and animals, and both are very aggressive, private creatures. And they all live very, very unnaturally long lives.
So it's not a giant leap to imagine that - if they were real - there would be turf wars, there would be rivalry.
And a Couple More Things to Consider:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wolves (the were variety included) are notoriously pack-minded and dominant. They would not share their territory easily or leave any other undead creature unchallenged. It is in the nature of the wolf to assert dominance.
Some lore says that werewolves and vampires have the keen ability to recognize each other, potentially compromising their efforts to disguise themselves in the human world. (Awkward!)
And any evil creature (as both are supposed to be) that recognizes the weaknesses of another is likely to exploit those weaknesses!
source(s):
Years and years and years of reading fantasy books, playing RPGs, and researching all things were and vampire.
Years and years and years of reading fantasy books, playing RPGs, and researching all things were and vampire.
| Asker's rating: |
voted helpful: bunnyphuphu, spoon, sarabond, nushka
If they did exist there's no reason to believe that they'd be enemies. Maybe not friends but certainly not enemies. THAT is just modern sci fi writers and Hollywood renditions to create story-lines...
This trend is from a Romanian Emperior called Dracula who went to war with the turkish goverment and use to hang the turkish soldiers on a spike and drink thier blood for breakfast and dinner...
This trend is from a Romanian Emperior called Dracula who went to war with the turkish goverment and use to hang the turkish soldiers on a spike and drink thier blood for breakfast and dinner...
voted unhelpful: gno
With all due respect, I think you're a bit turned around on your history.
Vampire lore existed long before Vlad Dracula.
(sources: http://hellhorror.com/vampires/history_of_vampires/
http://www.historyofthings.com/history-of-vampires
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampires)
And I'd like to read what you cite as your reasons for "no reason to believe that they'd be enemies". Really, I'm curious to understand what you mean.
Vampire lore existed long before Vlad Dracula.
(sources: http://hellhorror.com/vampires/history_of_vampires/
http://www.historyofthings.com/history-of-vampires
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampires)
And I'd like to read what you cite as your reasons for "no reason to believe that they'd be enemies". Really, I'm curious to understand what you mean.
Dracula was a "nickname", Vlad Tepes was the actual name.
I'm guessing the point here is that being fantasy creatures, one could imagine them as enemies or co-existing friendly, anything goes. But if you base these characters in pre-existent myths and legends, it would be better to follow the rules in order to create solid characters.
Otherwise, you may end up with vegetarian teenage vampires and we all know how bad it can be.
I'm guessing the point here is that being fantasy creatures, one could imagine them as enemies or co-existing friendly, anything goes. But if you base these characters in pre-existent myths and legends, it would be better to follow the rules in order to create solid characters.
Otherwise, you may end up with vegetarian teenage vampires and we all know how bad it can be.
voted helpful: spoon
I think the movie Underworld has a great premise for why Vampires and were-wolves dont get along
Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence (generally in the form of blood) of living creatures. Although typically described as undead, a vampire could be a living person.123456
In folkloric tales, undead vampires often visited loved ones and caused mischief or deaths in the neighbourhoods they inhabited when they were alive. They wore shrouds and were often described as bloated and of ruddy or dark countenance, markedly different from today's gaunt, pale vampire which dates from the early Nineteenth Century. Although vampiric entities have been recorded in most cultures, the term vampire was not popularised until the early 18th century, after an influx of vampire superstition into Western Europe from areas where vampire legends were frequent, such as the Balkans and Eastern Europe,7 although local variants were also known by different names, such as vampir (вампир) in Serbia, vrykolakas in Greece and strigoi in Romania. This increased level of vampire superstition in Europe led to mass hysteria and in some cases resulted in corpses actually being staked and people being accused of vampirism.
According to some sources, living vampires could be sorcerers or witches (such as some types of strigoi), or the result of a demonic contract (such as the Penanggalen and Loogaroo).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire
Werewolves, also known as lycanthropes from the Greek λυκάνθρωπος, λύκος (wolf) and άνθρωπος (human, man), are mythological or folkloric humans with the ability to shift shape into wolves or anthropomorphic wolf-like creatures, either purposely, by being bitten or scratched by another werewolf, or after being placed under a curse. This transformation is often associated with the appearance of the full moon, as popularly noted by the medieval chronicler Gervase of Tilbury, although it may have been recognized in earlier times among the ancient Greeks through the writings of Petronius.
Werewolves are often granted extra-human strength and senses, far beyond those of both wolves or men. The werewolf is generally held as a European character, although its lore spread through the world in later times. Shape-shifters, similar to werewolves, are common in tales from all over the world, most notably amongst the Native Americans, though most of them involve animal forms other than wolves.
Werewolves are a frequent subject of modern fictional books, although fictional werewolves have been attributed traits distinct from those of original folklore, most notably the vulnerability to silver bullets. Werewolves continue to endure in modern culture and fiction, with books, films and television shows cementing the werewolf's stance as a dominant figure in horror.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werewolves
In folkloric tales, undead vampires often visited loved ones and caused mischief or deaths in the neighbourhoods they inhabited when they were alive. They wore shrouds and were often described as bloated and of ruddy or dark countenance, markedly different from today's gaunt, pale vampire which dates from the early Nineteenth Century. Although vampiric entities have been recorded in most cultures, the term vampire was not popularised until the early 18th century, after an influx of vampire superstition into Western Europe from areas where vampire legends were frequent, such as the Balkans and Eastern Europe,7 although local variants were also known by different names, such as vampir (вампир) in Serbia, vrykolakas in Greece and strigoi in Romania. This increased level of vampire superstition in Europe led to mass hysteria and in some cases resulted in corpses actually being staked and people being accused of vampirism.
According to some sources, living vampires could be sorcerers or witches (such as some types of strigoi), or the result of a demonic contract (such as the Penanggalen and Loogaroo).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire
Werewolves, also known as lycanthropes from the Greek λυκάνθρωπος, λύκος (wolf) and άνθρωπος (human, man), are mythological or folkloric humans with the ability to shift shape into wolves or anthropomorphic wolf-like creatures, either purposely, by being bitten or scratched by another werewolf, or after being placed under a curse. This transformation is often associated with the appearance of the full moon, as popularly noted by the medieval chronicler Gervase of Tilbury, although it may have been recognized in earlier times among the ancient Greeks through the writings of Petronius.
Werewolves are often granted extra-human strength and senses, far beyond those of both wolves or men. The werewolf is generally held as a European character, although its lore spread through the world in later times. Shape-shifters, similar to werewolves, are common in tales from all over the world, most notably amongst the Native Americans, though most of them involve animal forms other than wolves.
Werewolves are a frequent subject of modern fictional books, although fictional werewolves have been attributed traits distinct from those of original folklore, most notably the vulnerability to silver bullets. Werewolves continue to endure in modern culture and fiction, with books, films and television shows cementing the werewolf's stance as a dominant figure in horror.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werewolves
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I remember reading somewhere (not sure were) that there were sotries about blood-drinking people (lets call them vampires) that used to command packs of wolves in order to prey on humans. Somehow this relationship changed dramatically but I don't know why, one can only speculate.
I'm sorry I can't be more specific about this but they still don't teach this kind of stuff in official universities.