I understand what you are looking for. You want to know if supernatural, virtually immortal, extra-human-power possessing vampires of the form
popularised by Ann Rice exist. They don't, at least in my opinion. Let's examine why I think this:
1) In stories such as Ann Rice's (and many others), vampires are created when a human drinks the blood of a vampire, usually after having had their
own blood drained. Why would this make the person turn into a vampire? The only possible reason I can imagine is the presence of a virus of some kind
- any other explanation must be a purely supernatural one, which I cannot accept. I also think that such a virus would spread far enough that evidence
of it would be more noticeable than it is. After all, look at the rapid spread of blood-borne viruses such as HIV.
2) Where are these vampires? Why don't we ever see evidence of them? Where are the deaths from exsanguination? Where are the reports of people with
funky powers? Where are the reports of people bursting into flame as the sun rises? It's not that such cases are rare - they're non-existent, at
least to my knowledge. Surely if vampires such as these existed we would see at least some evidence of their abilities or limitations. The fact that
we don't see
anything leads me to conclude that the traditional-style vampires are a mere myth.
3) The traditional vampire motif is too obviously a parody of the darker instincts of humanity for me to believe that it represents an actual
creature. For example: vampires, of the kind I think you are referring to, are like a darker but more refined human. They don't have any of the messy
drawbacks that humans have to suffer through - eating, excreting, aging, dying. They are forever young and forever beautiful. They have super powers -
strength, speed, flight, telepathy, telekinesis, sometimes others. Most of the time they are portrayed as having access to untold wealth. They are
almost always associated with sex and danger, a potent combination of humanity's primal instincts.
Simply put, vampires are everything that humanity wishes it could be and fears in itself. They are above the petty minutiae that we are forced to live
with. They prey on people and take what they want when they want. They are above our rules and our laws and that makes them attractive to people.
As for people who claim to be vampires, most acknowledge that they are not supernatural, or immortal. A lack of evidence regarding what we
traditionally viewed as vampires has given rise to alternate explanations: psychic vampires, astral vampires, emotional vampires and others. I am
aware that there are those people who claim to be 100s of years old. Let them show us their birth certificate, or an old photograph of themselves, or
any form of tangible evidence that they are something other than attention-seeking individuals latching onto an archetype.
Until we start to see at least some evidence that "classic" vampires exist, I think we have to assume that they are little more than humanity's
dark reflection and exist merely in our minds and in our stories.
You might also want to examine a book called
Piercing the
Darkness: Undercover With Vampires In America Today by Katherine Ramsland. She initially sets out to follow the trail of journalist Susan Walsh,
who supposedly disappeared whilst researching 'real' vampires. Ramsland quickly discovers that, whilst supernatural vampires are apparently
non-existent, the vampire subculture is alive and well. An interesting look into the vampire mythos in contemporary America, if not the real thing.
[edit on 22/8/05 by Jeremiah25]