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John William Polidori "The Vampyre"

Although this is not the original story he wrote for the ghost story competition at Lake Geneva, this novella is modeled after Byron's "A Fragment," which is the ghost story he wrote during the time they spent at the Villa Diodati during 1816. Polidori takes Byron's unfinished work and adopts this theme of vampire and the supernatural and puts it into his own text. Because of these similarities, during the time of publication, Byron was misattributed as being the author of the text. This text later inspired Bram Stoker's "Dracula."

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April 1, 1819

Aubrey meets Lord Ruthven, a mysterious man, where the pair travel to Rome. However, after learning that Ruthven has seduced a mutual acquaintance, Aubrey leaves to travel to Greece, where he meets a woman named Ianthe and begins to develop feelings for her. Ruthven rejoins Aubrey in Greece, and soon after, Ianthe is murdered by a vampire. Later on, the pair are attacked and Ruthven is fatally wounded. He makes Aubrey promise not to mention the death or any details about Ruthven until a year and a day later. After Aubrey returns to London, he sees Ruthven alive and well, where Ruthven reminds Aubrey of his promise. Ruthven then takes interest in Aubrey sister, and after realizing that those who come into contact with Ruthven end up dead or suffering, Aubrey has a nervous breakdown. Ruthven and Aubrey's sister become engaged, and the wedding date is set for the day after Aubrey's promise expires. Aubrey is helpless in defending his sister and does not arrive in time to stop the wedding. On the night after the wedding, her body is discovered drained of blood, with no trace of Ruthven.

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John William Polidori Recording of "The Vampyre" by LibriVox Audiobooks

This 43 minute audio recording recites the entirety of Polidori's "The Vampyre."

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