A vampire character written after the year 2000, is Klaus Mikaelson of Vampire Diaries and The Originals. Klaus is seen as a very ruthless vampire and willing to do the unspeakable to get his own way. He is very paranoid, and constantly believes people are conspiring against him. He is very short tempered and manipulative, and often has people do his bidding against their will. He is seen as uncaring but is very protective of those he cares for. Finally, he has a god complex and often treats others with contempt and feels it’s his duty to punish those who go against him.
The vampires shown in Lord Ruthven and Klaus Mikaelson are very different. Firstly, Lord Ruthven was not recklessly violent. Although Ruthven did have his victims, he chose his victims carefully and did not carelessly lay waste to an entire population. Klaus, however, does not share the same sense of caution that Ruthven does. On many occasions, he has committed massacre-like atrocities without thought of the consequences. Secondly, Klaus seems to share the same feeling that humans do. In fact, the show shares that vampires feel these human emotions more intensely. Paranoia, guilt, love, lust, and grief are all amongst the major feelings that Klaus battles throughout the plot. However, there is very little evidence that Lord Ruthven shares human emotions. He is often seen as cold, hard, and doesn’t react the way a man normally would.
Despite these differences, the biggest similarity between the two characters is the manipulation of others. Both Lord Ruthven and Klaus Mikaelson have manipulated other’s actions through words and pacts or promises. In the story Lord Ruthven asks Aubrey for a promise on his deathbed. “Swear by all your soul reveres, by all your nature fears, swear that, for a year and a day you will not impart your knowledge of my crimes or death to any living being in any way, whatever may happen, or whatever you may see” (pg. 49). Ruthven had realized that Aubrey knew of his nature and because he was seemingly going to die, he asked for this favor knowing Aubrey would think nothing could come of it. However, because Ruthven was going to betray death, this promise would allow him to marry his sister without any interference.
Hi Rebecca, I agree with your blog. I also watched the Originals and Klaus is very manipulative and ruthless compared to his siblings.
hey Rebecca, personally I never watched the originals but I have heard of it and a couple people have recommended it to me but now I have read your blog I might at least watch it. I like how did a great job describing Klaus Mikaelson and how you spoke about how he and Lord Ruthven are different but share something in common, which is their manipulation of others.
Fantastic analysis, Rebecca!