The introduction of vampiric lore and legend is paramount to the understanding of how vampires and vampirism in its widely differing incarnations came to be. As a superstition, scientific or psychological study, and even as a scapegoat, vampires continue to be feared throughout the world, whether in our imaginations or in real life. To answer that preternatural call, we begin by examining the earliest vampire literature and the man whose dramatic characters would forever change the vampire as we know it today — Bram Stoker.