A Soirée for Curious Minds - Lecture #4

The past never dies: Vampires and the historical periods they inhabit

A Soirée for Curious Minds

A series of evenings full of insight, conversation, and connection!

Brought to you in partnership by:

Glendon College, York University & The Rosedale Centre

The past never dies: Vampires and the historical periods they inhabit

- Prof. Valérie Florentin

If we all know about Dracula (Bram Stoker, 1897), who is probably the most famous vampire, few of us know that the UK passed the Aliens Act in 1905, in the hopes of stemming the flow of Eastern European immigrants, mostly Jews, fleeing persecution in the Russian empire. To have a right to enter Britain, foreign citizens had to prove they had the means to sustain themselves, that they had no sickness or disability, that they had not been expulsed from their country after the commission of a crime. Dracula was Eastern European (Transylvania is part of today’s Romania), he bought an estate in London, but he had a transmissible sickness of sorts and had committed crimes, without having been convicted. To a certain extent, Dracula then represents the Other that the British citizens of the times deemed undesirable.

Is Dracula a historical fluke? No, as we will see in this talk, vampires are often used to depict that Other that we fear, that monster in our midst, even though their appearance and crimes change with the times.

Program:

A Soirée for Curious Minds brings the richness of university-level thinking directly into the community. Designed for inquisitive spirits, the series offers a rare opportunity to engage with exceptional scholars in an intimate, welcoming setting.

Each evening begins with doors opening early, inviting neighbours and friends to gather in our art gallery. Enjoy a glass of wine or sparkling water while a live pianist fills the room with a captivating soundtrack – the perfect prelude to an evening of ideas.

What follows is a thoughtfully curated academic experience, led by esteemed professors from Glendon College, York University, whose teaching and research span literature, psychology, cultural studies, and contemporary political thought.

The series explores big ideas across time and disciplines, from Shakespearean history and the psychology of memory to cultural mythologies and modern populism, offering intellectual depth without pretense. It’s an invitation to learn, be inspired, and to savor conversations that linger, echoing the brilliance of the ideas shared.

Valérie Florentin is an assistant professor in translation at York University, Glendon campus. In their free time, they translate roleplaying games (some with vampires, others with aliens), read and watch TV shows and movies (mostly based on books), to look at adaptations and how they (mis)represent social or historical trends.