The Erotic and Toxic Relationships of Interview with a Vampire

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This book has many different relationships scattered throughout the four-part story. Since Louis is our protagonist, and a poor, passive one at that, I’ll focus mainly on the several relationships that he has throughout the story.
Starting with the most obvious one –Louis’s relationship with Lestat. This is not only where the homoerotic relations start, but also the toxic and slave-like one. Throughout a significant chunk of the novel, we follow Louis and his hatred for Lestat. What started off as a magically seduced and lust filled relationship ends rather quickly after Lestat changed Louis into a vampire. This is most likely because Lestat’s abusive character is revealed almost immediately after Louis is changed. Lestat just wants Louis’s money and land. He also holds his “knowledge” of being a vampire over Louis, forcing Louis to remain Lestat’s slave and furthering the toxicity of the relationship.
Louis’s relationship with Babette is also worth mentioning briefly. Because Louis is a character who struggles with humanity and what is morally correct, the rise and fall of his relationship with Babette is a moment where his character significantly shifts. Louis pretends to be an angel of sorts for Babette, telling her how to succeed with the plantation after the loss of her brother. He appears (always in the shadows) before Babette giving her advice and care. However, in his time of need when he reveals himself to her, Babette calls him a demon and shatters a lantern at his feet, engulfing him in flames. I would like to take a moment and draw a parallel to Frankenstein. Frankenstein’s monster helps and watches over the cottagers and he also saves a young girl from a stream, but when he is revealed to these characters, they also call him a monster and attempt to kill him.
After the fall of Louis’s relationship with Babette, he flees New Orleans. It is in this moment that Louis almost becomes an active protagonist –he is about to leave Lestat, but in an effort to keep Louis hostage, Lestat turns Claudia, a five-year-old girl, into a vampire. The relationship between Louis, Lestat, and Claudia is an interesting one. Claudia grows into a woman on the inside, but stays a child on the outside. Although Claudia relates to Lestat in loving the kill, she relates to Louis on every other aspect. As creepy and uncomfortable it is, Louis and Claudia love each other. I could almost argue that Claudia is the protagonist of this story. She is strong-willed and intelligent and she constantly makes decisions. Together Louis and Claudia separate from Lestat and remain together for a long time searching for other vampires. Their love for one another is undeniable, yet the constant descriptions of her appearance paired with them kissing and holding each other is disturbing.
The two finally make a home for themselves in Paris, where Louis meets another significant character, Armand. This relationship takes the gold for toxic. Louis and Armand appear to love each other, but Armand is distant in a strange way. A majority of their relationship in the beginning is following each other and staring at each other. They often talk about nothing and just long for one another. Armand also hates Claudia, who at this point Louis still loves even though she has grown distant. I say that this relationship is toxic because Armand is threatened by Claudia and pretty much assists in her death. Armand and Louis relationship ends rather quickly due to the constant disconnect between them after Claudia’s death.
Although Louis was the heroine of this story and the protagonist, it was a decent read. I’ve seen the movie and was impressed by how much they managed to keep the same. We do, however, miss Babette, Morgan and Emily, and Louis’s brother. The relationships throughout the story are negative and often stem from lust and yearning –the line between actual love and a thirst for blood is constantly crossed, making it difficult to say which relationships are actually based on love, curiosity, or necessity. Looking over the entire novel, there doesn’t seem to be one relationship that worked for the vampires. They are forever immortal and forever alone.

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