The Vampire Child and the Hunter / El niño vampiro y el cazador

It is true that the vampire is, perhaps, the most famous monster among those who won a definitive place in contemporary fiction after the release of Universal Pictures monster films. But, it is also true that this popularity has carried an overexposure of the vampire character that has led to an increasing creative crisis in recent works of literature, film and other media. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that vampires (o monsters in general) have come to an end and cannot be revitalised. Proofs of this are «Drink my red blood» and the novel I Am Legend , both by Richard Matheson. In them the author offers an original vision of the vampire character by means of the protagonists: the vampire-child and the vampire hunter. Through the solitude of both characters and their particular features, Matheson shows that monsters are still a powerful metaphor about the Other.