“The vampire was real. It was only that his true story had never been told.”-Richard Matheson, I Am LegendI'm a sucker (ha) for vampire stories, well, good vampire stories I should say, not ones that involve sparkling teenagers or whatever. I Am Legend exhibits all the qualities that make a vampire story great -- bloodthirsty monsters yowling outside the home of the last human all night, a protagonist whom is out for blood as well (just not to drink it), the integration of a new, scarier society, and the list goes on.
Another element that makes the story worth reading is Matheson's writing. The reader is alone with Robert Neville, trapped in that garlic-filled house with Robert's thoughts, fears, desires, past, and future. With the exception of the flashbacks, encounter with Ruth, and Ben telling Robert to come out now, the book is primarily reader and Robert, yet the story grips us by the neck and refuses to let go until our blood is drained.
The emotional connection Matheson establishes between Robert and the dog is strong too. I'm not even a dog person and I still felt my heartstrings tug at how hard Robert worked to get that dog to trust him, to help the dog, and the poor thing died within the week. Ugh! I guess there's a reason why people always shout "don't kill the pet!"The only thing I wanted more explanation of was the living vampires versus the dead ones. My assumption was the living vampires were turned into vampires while still alive, and the dead ones somehow brought back from the dead, a bit like zombies or corpses, but I was never quite sure about the distinguishing differences, other than the two groups didn't seem to get along at the group Ruth was with obliterated the dead vamps. I love the concept, but some clarification would have helped me out a bit. Especially since this is a book that at times gave minute details about obscure things (Robert's research about blood, garlic, the other scientific terms and so on...) I was a fan of how Matheson's vampires are subject to the typical lure of garlic, sunlight, and stakes, but Robert's research and experiments provided some twists on the usual stereotypes.
I enjoyed the idea of the new society being integrated because Earth was no longer home for Robert. He lost his home when he lost Virginia and his daughter. He became a man trying to figure out his purpose. Was it for revenge? Justice? Or was he simply someone who got used to his situation and tried to keep alive. Matheson does write, “A man could get used to anything if he had to," and I think that's the kind of situation Robert found himself in. He learned to handle horror and monotony because he had to if he wanted to stay alive.
He fought and killed until the man ended up with a bit of monster in him as well, as reflected by his caveman appearance, which frightened Ruth despite her being sent to spy on him. Robert became lost to the madness of the dark new world because there simply was no place for him anymore. He became a legend.
"Robert Neville looked out over the new people of the earth. He knew he
did not belong to them; he knew that, like the vampires, he was
anathema and black terror to be destroyed. And, abruptly, the concept
came, amusing to him even in his pain."-Richard Matheson, I Am Legend
I like exploring the idea of what we might become if forced into a world very different from the one that makes us feel at home. I wonder the limit of what we could "get used to" in that kind of world. Clearly a lot.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the tone of this story is great. We feel everything right with poor Robert. I might think it meanders or lingers a bit, but the tone and close PoV are perfect. We even get to watch Robert become the monster he is eventually feared to be by the "new order". And not just in his appearance, but his actions as well. One of my favorite parts is when he's explaining to Ruth why he just goes around killing as many as he can, even the ones that haven't died. And for the first time he wonders if that is really the right thing to do. For the first time we, and he, are getting an outsiders look at what has become the new normal for him.
ReplyDeleteGlad you brought up Matheson's ability to lock the reader inside with Neville. We are trapped not only alongside of him, but within the guy's head. I am amazed at Matheson's ability to write an entire story with so little social interaction. Not only does it work, it is that isolation that is powerful. The vampires are all well and good, but this story was upsetting because Neville was trapped and always on a timer, always on the edge of a horrible death.
ReplyDeleteI also appreciated your point about the types of vampires. I was also confused and wanted more explanation. I got the impression that they had caught the bacteria but took some sort of drug to prevent from becoming fully undead, so managed to keep their higher thinking processes. But I couldn't quite figure it all out either.
I had the sincere misfortune of watching the movie before reading the book. In the movie, if I remember correctly, the dog is on the screen from the get go and gets killed off at the beginning of act 3. Because of this I kept expecting the dog to hang around a lot longer. So when the dog died by the end of the chapter I was... well, shocked! But I'm guessing that's what Matheson was going for. I say this ever time (and I really shouldn't be surprised) but the book was WAY better than the movie.
ReplyDeletesome great thoughts here. First, I was also very touched by the dog--I think it's because it's the first time we get to see Robert truly care about something, truly try at something. The dog makes him fully realize that he's accepted his predicament as the last human on earth...BUT WAIT, there's a dog! the dog is fine, maybe other things are fine too. It gives him so much hope, only to utterly destroy him emotionally. In a way, when the dog dies, Robert loses humanity all over again.
ReplyDeleteAlso, it was my understanding that everyone who died turned into vampires, but people who were sick enough with the disease were also vampires. The vampires who were not dead retained some sort of their humanity, which is why the living-dead killed the dead-dead. Though I agree, he really missed a golden opportunity when he didn't explain it.