WELCOME TO THE TEAM
Beware the night, little one, for it teems with beasts from myth and legend, as real as you or I. Whilst we dream, they lurch, crawl, and slither o’er moonlit cobblestone pathways—the very ones you trod upon to school in the brightness of day. Nightmarish ghouls surround our home and whisper our names, whilst you, clutching this bear for protection, slumber between thin sheets. But a stuffed toy offers scant protection, indeed, from Undead creatures rapping at yon window pane seeking entry; whose glowing eyes can see your soul and unlock your motor functions; and who hiss dark commands demanding fealty. So beware, little one. Do not part these curtains. More importantly, do not welcome them. To do so is to court tragedy. For even a wee peek at a countenance most evil is to surrender innocence. You would forever be lost, whilst I, asleep on the other side of this wall, though surrounded by weaponry, would be helpless to save you. In the coming years I will show you my ways. I will impart crucial practices to protect yourself from their wrath. And I will guide you in the varied manners of their destruction. But for tonight, sleep well, little one, and a fond good-night to you as well, Teddy. I hope to see you in the morning.
- my great-great-great grandfather Abraham’s favorite bedtime recitation, as told to my great-great grandfather Abraham II, who then told it to Abraham III, who then told it to Abraham IV, and then to my Uncle Hans, who shared it with me
My name is Ilse.
I’m here to recite something of my own to you.
Supreme, monstrous evil lurks among us…but it is very much mortal. It stalks the marbled hallways of wealth and power. It doesn’t hide from daylight, but rather craves and even demands our attention. It strips away our rights, denies our basic needs, claims our earnings, and destroys our legacies with impunity. This supreme, monstrous evil exists only to foster fear and pit us against each other. While we bicker and fight, it lights cigars and laughs.
Story time is over.
Wake up.
“It’s no accident…that most of the bodies exhumed were young women, just as ghosts and witches — and for that matter, mediums — were often female. Such lore is ‘a two-edged sword…a way for the powerless to have power, but a fear of powerful women as well.’”
Very good article.
I would add one thing.
While the Mercy Brown case in 1892 may have influenced Stoker, his seaside pub interviews with my great-great-great grandfather Abraham, prior to the writing of his 1897 novel, are largely unknown by the general public.