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Samantha Luu

Professor Granillo

English 103

April 8, 2019

Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter

“History prefers legends to men. It prefers nobility to brutality, soaring speeches to quiet

deeds. History remembers the battle and forgets the blood. Whatever history remembers of me, if

it remembers anything at all, shall only be the fraction of the truth.” This quote, taken from

Abraham Lincoln’s diary, has held true to many accounts in what is taught about history. This

abject disregard of complex events, first person memoirs, and a variety of motives unaccounted

for has left the public remembering little to nothing about Abraham Lincoln and other historical

figures, but new historicism seeks to uncover those truths. When applying the lens of new

historicism, with an attempt to understand history through literature through its cultural context,

allows historians to hypothesize details of the past that may have never been considered before.

No film could be a better example of that than ​Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.​ By analyzing

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter​ with the tools supplied through semiotics and through the

lens of new historicism, audiences may not specifically be persuaded that Abraham Lincoln

could have slayed vampires along with abolishing slavery, but teach the audience to understand

and appreciate a past American president with a perspective different than what was given to

them by textbooks.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter​ is a American dark fantasy action horror film made in

2012, using the research and narrative written in a book by the same name. Unlike a typical
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documentary, the movie takes unexpected and whimsical turns: rather than proposing that

Lincoln’s mother had spontaneously died from an unknown illness like most accounts, ​Abraham

Lincoln: Vampire Hunter​ shows how the cause of death could have been murder -- killed by a

vampire. This would ultimately lead to the motive of Lincoln’s secret pastime, seeking revenge

from the vampires that had taken away someone who had instilled the valuable characteristics

that also made him fit to be the leader of America. Surprisingly, all of the plot points of the

vampire hunting story fit into Lincoln’s personal, professional, and presidential life like a glove.

Throughout ​Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter,​ several quotes are recited from the

primary account of Lincoln’s life, his personal diary. Through semiotics, historians find a deeper

understanding in his words, and the many signs he may have alluded to that may have been

passed off when previously read. “In semiotics, the main idea is that everything is a “sign”...our

culture has come to a common understanding that a number of random signs and symbols”

(Silverman, 13). This can be shown even through the opening quote, first stated in the movie:

“Whatever history remembers of me, if it remembers anything at all, shall only be the fraction of

the truth...a husband, a lawyer, a president...I shall always think of myself as a man who

struggled against darkness.” Upon first glance, this darkness could refer to any type of struggle

he could have had throughout his life, whether it be one or all -- areas of personal growth, the

confederates of the Civil War, or, as the director suggests, his goal to wipe out the vampires that

have caused bloodshed to many victims like his mother. What may seem as a far stretch at first

can be analyzed deeper by considering the signified connotations of the signifier, vampire. It

would have made sense to almost replace the word “darkness” with “vampires,” as his literal

battles would be against these monsters.

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Applying these findings with the lens of new historicism allows the audience to connect

the reasoning and analysis the director wishes to show through this film. Uncovering Lincoln’s

true “struggle against darkness” is essential to understanding the impact of such a profound

theory presented as merely a sci-fi film. As Tyson describes when talking about new historical

and cultural criticism, “any given event is a product of its culture, but it also affects that culture

in return” (Tyson, 269). In this mid 19th century era, the culture of mysticism and supernatural

events fit perfectly into the theme of vampirism that is shown throughout the movie ​Abraham

Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.​ Vampires are often shown throughout culture as a being of the night.

This supposedly mythical creature can only exist where the sun doesn’t shine -- the vampire is a

being of the dark. Understanding that this monster is almost defined as darkness, when

correlating evidence throughout the film of how other aspects of his life could have included

vampire hunting, his “struggle against darkness” suddenly doesn’t seem as irrational as initially

proposed.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter​ is an exciting, action packed adventure that analyzes

semiotics written in multiple historical accounts detailing President Lincoln’s life and uses new

historicism to postulate an entirely new perspective on hidden details that were previously

missed by other historians. Although this speculation might be far from true, it is meant to open

the audience to thinking beyond the literal meaning of the literature they may have read, and

unveil new truths about other historical figures throughout time.