Nicole Samoylovich, Period 7, 3/25/22

 Blog #3: Literacy & Learning

• Write about your thoughts regarding any of the fiction or non-fiction covered in class.

    Our recent analysis of Anne Rice’s “Interview with the Vampire” has awakened me to the complexity of the philosophical question of what it truly means to be “human,” or rather, the moral question of what the true distinguisher between a good and a bad person is; what defines good and evil. I’ve always enjoyed stories whose characters are morally gray, and Louis is a perfect example. In many ways, he is incredibly sympathetic because we as the readers get an intimate glimpse into his violently conflicted emotional state, and because in many ways, his actions, emotions, and experiences are very human (guilt, loss, love, etc.). He also tries very hard to retain his humanity, or in other terms, his “goodness”, for a significant portion of the book. However, he obviously does some objectively evil things as well, such as turning Claudia or killing countless random innocent people, and it is Louis’ very own existence as a vampire that plagues him because it requires him to throw his moral principles out the window. I think one of the most interesting aspects of the book is Louis’ relatability and the way his journey is a bit analogous to the universal human experience, despite the fact that he is not human himself. 

    In the book, the act of killing is closely linked to sex. It is often described as carrying sensual undertones, such as when Lestat made Louis or when Louis made Claudia, or even any killing in the book. Louis hates himself because the circumstances of his existence compel him to kill, an act that he views as the reason for his eternal damnation. He feels immense shame about his nature, and I couldn’t help but think about the similarities between that and humanity’s own shame about its nature. The human urge to have sex, particularly in Judeo-Christian faith, despite being necessary for the survival of the species, is discussed with an air of shame, and has historically been taboo. I think Louis is one of the best examples of one’s moral compass going against their biology and how that can cause immense unhappiness and unfulfillment in their life. I interpreted the message of this, in the scope of the book, to say that just as Louis learns to reevaluate his morals because his biology has changed, humanity should learn to not be ashamed of its nature and live life to the fullest.

    This especially applies when I think about what Anne Rice was trying to say about LGBT rights with the homoerotic undertones of this book. Christianity, and religion in general, has historically frowned on homosexuality, depicting it an eternally punishable sin and an abomination, but this goes against human nature and only causes immense unhappiness and shame, so gay Christians need to navigate a completely different terrain. Their nature goes against their learned faith, so they need to figure out a way to realign their morals and live their life without constant shame. Louis, a Christian whose identity now makes him a killer, must also find a way to live his life without denying that identity.

    Humanity, not knowing where we came from, or why, or whether we are intrinsically good or bad morally, is forced to confront the task of setting our own moral code for how we should act. Morality is incredibly hard to define and whether or not an action is right or wrong greatly varies depending on individual perspective, which is why this task is so hard; good and evil are impossible to objectively prove, and moreover, the idea that there is “no knowledge” or objective truth instills a devastating fear in us as humans, the same way it scares both Claudia and Louis, who yearn for answers to their philosophical questions. The idea of there being no God, no answers, no good and evil, no real reason or structure or explanation for our existence, can be terrifying, which is why religion is such a comfort for many. Louis, however, must abandon his human sensibilities and Christian perspective, and define his morals for himself. We define what truly makes us human, even though the truth is that no one really knows. Vampires don’t really know what they are either. Louis doesn’t know how to be a vampire because he doesn’t even know what a vampire is. Similarly, without being told our purpose in life and how we should live, we can’t ever truly know how to be human; there is no one right or wrong way to do so. 

• Reflect on any new information you have learned in English class by considering how that learning influences your critical perception.

    Learning about monsters such as vampires and Grendel in English class has made me think a lot more deeply about how pretty much all the monsters that humans have invented in our literature are invented to serve the purpose of symbolizing our greatest fears as a species, which is usually death, but not always, and how each monster can actually get a pretty sympathetic story. We as the readers can forgive and empathize with monsters who do immoral things because we can relate to them in some way.  Furthermore, many monsters often say something about God or religion by representing atheism or sin of some kind. Many legends about vampires, for example, say they can’t enter churches or touch crucifixes, which is to say they are “godless” and therefore monsters. As we saw with Grendel, and now with Louis, the actions of those we consider “monsters” can often hit close to home and mirror our own evil actions as humans. So, to be specific, English class has influenced my critical perception of morality, and particularly religion, quite deeply. I look for religious symbols in most work now, especially older works of literature, because there is usually some commentary on human nature and morality in those stories. I’ve never been a very religious person and always held some degree of confusion towards religious people, but now, especially after reading Interview, I really do think I have a much better understanding of why people are religious and the role religion plays in our universal human experience. The fact that morality is subjective is very troubling, and every person needs a set of values to live by in order to define themselves. We need some concept of forgiveness and meaning in our lives because the “knowledge that there is no knowledge” can consume us with anguish at not understanding our own nature and mortality.

• How is what you’re learning applied to any other classes/the world around you?

I think one of my biggest takeaways in terms of real-world connections was how Louis’ journey made a statement about mental illness, specifically depression. I think we as humans all feel some degree of depression at our existential crisis, at the state of not knowing our place in the universe; but our own mortality can often drive us to dangerous levels of depression if we don’t find some way to define our lives and give it meaning, so mental health awareness is urgent. When we all tried to diagnose Louis in class and landed on depression, it made so much sense; he has lost all interest in the things that made him human because he is filled with self-hatred and apathy. He simply did not see the point in living for much of the book. These symptoms are barely different from how humans experience depression, and that has made me realize that at the end of the day, we all just want to be happy and feel that we are good people doing the right thing, which the world can often make really, really hard to do. Depression rates, especially for young people, have been growing rapidly in recent years, and loneliness has been a big part of that. Louis’ loneliness defines his depression, as does our loneliness, our assumption that no one else understands what we are going through; and the longer it goes on, the more of our innate sense of “humanity” we lose. So, to preserve our humanity, we should be as empathetic and aware of mental health issues as possible.