15. Jeepers Creepers, Where'd Ya Get Those Eyes?!

'Salem's Lot brings whole new meaning to the term 'the eyes have it'. The eyes of the vampires in this novel had all the power. Stephen King made sure to let the reader know that the eyes played an important role when inviting a vampire in.

As more and more people were beginning to fall victim to vampirism, Stephen King gave us a closer look at how exactly the victim got drawn into the path of the vampire. The scene where Mark Petrie was visited by Danny Glick at night was probably one of the most important in understanding the concept.

pg.261

"'Yet if you looked in the eyes, it wasn't so bad. If you looked in the eyes, you weren't so afraid anymore and you saw that all you had to do was open the window and say, 'C'mon in, Danny,' and then you wouldn't be afraid at all because you'd be at one with Danny and all of them and at one with him. You'd be - No! That's how they get you!"

What I found most interesting about this instance was the fact that even though Mark knew he wasn't supposed to look into the eyes, he was curious and struggled to look away. This tells us a little about human nature. We are curious about evil and its depths. The best I can compare this to is a news story. Nobody really likes to turn on the television and watch a news story about how the flowers are bright and the sun is out and the butterflies are fluttering all over. No, we are drawn to news stories about murder mysteries and burglaries.

Another thing that I found interesting about this part in the book is that I could tie it back to the Marsten House. Since the beginning of the book, Stephen King has ended nearly every chapter with a character looking up at the Marsten House's bright windows and its shutters. Why is everyone so fascinated with looking up at the shutters? Could it be that the house imitates a vamire? The windows represent the vampire's eyes. The characters are curious about the evilness of the house and can't pull their attention away. They are drawn to the evil, just like they are drawn to the evil eyes of the vampire.