John William Polidori's The Vampyre

In the novella “The Vampyre”, by John William Polidori, the primary villain is Ruthven. Though it isn’t immediately apparent to our protagonist, Aubrey, Ruthven is a vampire. Ruthven’s nature serves as the conflict of story. Ruthven must feed on blood, and in doing so kills people. It isn’t this reason that Ruthven is a villain, however, but it is his targets that shows his true villainy. Ruthven could target people such as the old and the sickly, people close to death. Instead, he chooses to target those that are young and youthful. There are three instances that give us insight into Ruthven’s character and motivations: who he give money to in Belgium, murdering Ianthe, and murdering Aubrey’s sister.

The first instance that gives us insight into Ruthven’s character is during his and Aubrey’s stay in Belgium. Ruthven decides he will donate some of his money to the poor. However, it is not the people that will use this money to legitimately help themselves that he gives money to, but it is the people that will use this money to continue funding their vices. This shows us Ruthven is intentionally doing things to spread misery and vice. This act allows us as the audience to see that Ruthven is not interested in trying to be a good person and help those in need. Ruthven enjoys the

Ianthe is a woman that Aubrey begins to fall in love with during his stay in Greece. Sometime later, Ruthven decides to kill Ianthe and feed on her blood. This allows to see why Ruthven is with Aubrey. He is using Aubrey as a means to an end. Ruthven wishes to feed on women, and Aubrey is leading him right to them. In Rome, he used Aubrey to get close to the daughter of a noble, in Greece he used Aubrey to find another woman, and he used Aubrey’s honor to allow him to get close to Aubrey’s sister. This murder allows us to see that Ruthven is specifically targeting Aubrey, so he can see Aubrey