Looking back through some of the websites that I have
sourced before, I noticed a new link had been added. It was a link to the TSD,
the Transylvanian Society of Dracula. When I first saw this link I was thinking
that it was a new link talking about an old society that had existing in either
the time of Vlad Tepes or just after he had died. The thing is, it wasn't. It is
a new link about a society that had formed in 1991 and is still strong in the
present day.
It is a society that is dedicated to the study of both the fictional character
of Count Dracula and the historical man Vlad Tepes. This is a society that
people can join and find other people who share their love of Dracula, both the
history and the myth. It is a non-profit organization that has chapters throughout Romania and Europe, and there are events held annually in Romania by the TSD. There is even a Canadian chapter. Unfortunately, there is no chapter in the US, but
Americans can join through the Canadian chapter. Even some of BramStoker’s relatives are a part of the society.
Once a person becomes a member, they receive a few things. They get a quarterly newsletter, a free copy
of the annual scholarly publication (Journal of Dracula Studies), access to a membership directory, the occasional in-house publication, access to various
resource materials of the TSD (upon request only), and updated information on
Dracula conferences and travel tours. Of course the main thing that people receive
is the feeling of belonging to a group of like minded people. The link will be at
the bottom of the page. The head office of the Society is located in Bucharest, Romania, and there
is also the Company of Mysterious Journeys. This is a travel agency that is
run by members of the TSD. They have tours of Transylvania and Romania
available. The link provided will also have the methods of how to become a
member of the TSD. There does appear to be an annual fee, which is
understandable due to the newsletter and annual scholarly publication that
members will receive.
Having learned about this new
society it makes me think of some things. For example are some of the directors
and producers of Dracula movies part of the TSD? Dracula is slowly coming back
to popularity. They are even making a new television series for Dracula within
the year of 2013-- hopefully this will help Transylvania and its history. Are any of the people involved in the making and production
of this show member of the TSD? Are any of the people involved in previous
Dracula shows and movies members of the TSD? It is something to consider. The
members of the TSD can and do come from all walks of life.
One major thing to keep in mind
is that the TSD does not connect itself to either practising or aspiring
vampires. They study one vampire, which would be Dracula, in a fictional sense.
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